SEOUL, The Doosan Bears announced Wednesday they have acquired former major league left-hander Brandon Waddell.
The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) club said Waddell will earn US$200,000 in guaranteed salary for the rest of the season, with up to $30,000 also up for grabs in incentives.
Waddell will replace the reigning KBO MVP Ariel Miranda, who struggled with shoulder problems all season before the Bears decided to cut bait last month.
Miranda set a new KBO single-season record with 225 strikeouts last year en route capturing the regular season MVP award. This year, the Cuban left-hander pitched to an 8.22 ERA in three starts without a win-loss record. In 7 2/3 innings, he only gave up two hits but walked 18 batters.
Miranda is one of seven foreign players to have won a regular season MVP in the KBO and is the first from the group to be released during the season immediately following their MVP campaign.
Waddell, a 28-year-old native of Houston, was a fifth-round choice by the Pittsburgh Pirates at the 2015 draft.
He appeared in 11 major league games for four clubs. He made his debut with the Pirates in 2020, and pitched for the Minnesota Twins, Baltimore Orioles and St. Louis Cardinals in 2021.
So far in 2022, Waddell has gone 2-1 with three saves and a 3.30 ERA in 23 games for Triple-A Memphis, a Cardinals affiliate.
The Bears said Wadell can touch 152 kilometers per hour (94.4 miles per hour) with his four-seam fastball. According to Baseball Savant website, Waddell averaged 92.5 mph with his four-seam fastball in the majors last year, also relied on a slider, a changeup and a sinker.
He will join his new KBO team once his work visa is issued, the Bears added.
Source: Yonhap News Agency