Foreign pitcher Eric Lauer (29), who was a member of the KIA Tigers’ combined championship this year, has found a new team.
Mark Paynesand of MLB.com , the official website of Major League Baseball (MLB), said on the 14th (Korea time) that left-hander Eric Lauer signed a non-roster invitation contract with the Toronto Blue Jays. According to Shai Davidi of Canada SportsNet, he can receive 2.2 million dollars (about 3.1 billion won) if he enters the Major League roster.
Lauer pitched in 120 big league games (112 starts) and posted 36 wins, 37 losses and an ERA of 4.30. He had 567 strikeouts, 230 walks and 585 hits during 596 ⅔ innings, and marked a 0.254 hit-out rate and 1.37 on-base allowed per inning (WHIP).
Lauer, who made his debut with the San Diego Padres in 2018, has quickly become a pillar of the major league starting rotation. After being traded to the Milwaukee Brewers in 2020, he had his best season in the 2022 season with an 11-7 record and a 3.69 ERA.
However, in May 2023, he suffered from right shoulder impingement syndrome, and inflammation was also found in the elbow of his throwing left arm. As a result, his average fastball speed of 93.3 miles (about 150.1 kilometers) dropped to 90.8 miles (about 146.1 kilometers). Lauer, who lost his health, was greatly shaken psychologically, and eventually finished 2023 with four wins, six losses and an ERA of 6.56, in 10 games. 온라인바카라
Since then, Lauer has signed a minor league contract with the Houston Astros, but he failed to make it to the big leagues, and KIA did not miss the opportunity. Lauer signed a contract with KIA in early August for a total of 350,000 dollars (about 500 million won), including a down payment of 50,000 dollars and an annual salary of 300,000 dollars. With Will Crow (30) out due to an elbow injury, he brought Lauer in when Cam Aldred (28), a substitute foreigner, was not satisfied.
However, in seven regular-season games, Lauer had two wins and two losses with a 4.93 ERA, 37 strikeouts in 34 ⅔ innings, WHIP 1.36 and a 0.259 hit-out rate. In Game 3 of the Samsung Lions and the Korean Series, he pitched well as a starting pitcher, allowing five hits (two homers), no outs, eight strikeouts, and two runs in five innings, but became a losing pitcher. Still, he contributed to the win by playing in the rotation at Kia, where foreign pitchers were often injured. After winning the championship, Lauer was delighted by the “peek” dance with his teammates.
With KIA re-signing its ace James Nail (31) early on, Shim Jae-hak told Star News, “The other two players (Rauer, Socrates) have yet to decide whether to renew their contracts or not.” And while Socrates was placed on the list of players withheld, Lauer was excluded, which confirmed his separation from KIA.
