Pirates GM: Kang's status for 2018 still unclear
Jung Ho Kang didn't suit up for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2017 following a DUI arrest that prevented him from acquiring a work visa. General manager Neal Huntington wasn't able to provide much insight into the third baseman's status for the upcoming season, either.
"We're still remaining open-minded in that situation. A year removed, will the (visa application) process be different? Will there be a different viewpoint taken on it? We hope so, because he's a good player," Huntington told MLB.com's Mark Feinsand earlier this week. "We hope so, because he's a good player. While we have a lot of work to do on why he's in this situation, we believe we can help him and we believe (he) can help us."
Last year, following his third DUI arrest in his native South Korea since 2009, Kang received a suspended jail sentence that effectively barred him from entering the United States, and was then placed on the restricted list by the Pirates. Now, although the 30-year-old is playing in the Dominican Winter League with the hope of returning to Pittsburgh in 2018, the Pirates are prepared for the possibility that he won't rejoin the club this season.
"We'll get to a point in the offseason where we've got to plan without Kang, then if he is able to get into the country, that's a bonus for us. If he doesn't get in, then we haven't lost anything," Huntington said. "The (Sean) Rodriguez acquisition in the first week of August played a role in that."
That said, Kang adds much more punch to the Pirates' lineup than Rodriguez. Since debuting with Pittsburgh in 2015, he owns an .838 OPS (126 OPS+) in 229 games, and has averaged 18 homers, 22 doubles, and 3.0 WAR per season. Rodriguez, who turns 33 in April, is coming off the worst season of his 10-year career, having hit just .167/.276/.295 (51 OPS+) in 54 games in 2017.
"Sean will have a baseball offseason, and we're looking forward to that," added Huntington. "A big part of the acquisition of Sean was Plan B, in case Kang wasn't able to get into the country."