The New York Mets released an eight-year pro veteran and a controversial figure.
New York is in the midst of a three-game series against the Cleveland Guardians, and the Mets released a veteran outfielder from its orgainzation. According to the MiLB transactions log, the Mets released Ji Hwan Bae, who was playing in Triple-A Syracuse.
Bae is a 5-foot-11 outfielder who is from Korea. The Mets claimed him off waivers from the Pittsburgh Pirates in November. In his first season in the Mets organization in Triple-A, Bae hit .257 with 5 home runs and 32 RBIs.
The 27-year-old signed with the Atlanta Braves in September of 2017. At the time of the signing, he was the youngest Asian baseball player to sign with the Braves in nearly two decades. However, in November, the MLB voided the contract as a result of fraudulent contract negotiations.
According to reports, Bae had agreed to sign for $300,000, the Braves planned to pay him an additional $600,000 by reallocating money promised to other signees. After his contract was voided, the KBO banned Bae for two years after he skipped the KBO’s draft to join the Braves organization.
Bae then signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2018 for a reported signing bonus of $1.25 million. He made his MLB debut in 2022 with the Pirates and made the Opening Day roster in 2023. He spent parts of four seasons with the Pirates before being placed on waivers and being claimed by New York.
Bae Also Had Legal Issues
Along with the signing issues with the Braves, Bae was also involved in a legal issue.
In May of 2018, Bae was accused of slapping, choking, and kicking his ex-girlfriend in 2017 on New Year’s Eve, when he was 18. The Athletic’s Rob Biertempfel revealed that Bae temporarily left the organization and has flown home to Daegu, South Korea, to cooperate in a police investigation.
“Bae Ji-hwan hit me,” Kim, 18, told The Athletic on Friday via text message. “He hit me in Daegu. The first time I was (physically) abused was on New Year’s Eve (in 2017). There (also) was verbal abuse. Before the actual physical abuse, I was under critical stress due to him and his family. His family and he repeatedly asked me to ‘endure’ him because he is a baseball player and he needs support.”
In October 2018, he was convicted of assault in court in Daegu and required to pay a fine of $2 million. In April, the MLB suspended Bae without pay for 30 games because of the incident.
Mets Turn Page After Deadline
New York was an active seller at the trade deadline as the Mets are in the midst of another disappointing season.
After the deadline, Mets GM David Stearns said he liked what the team was able to do and reset the team.
“First and foremost, we added a tremendous amount of talent all throughout our system,” Stearns said. “Different shapes and sizes, different positional groupings, arms and bats, really good defenders. So overall, we believe that we’ve added to our system. We added players that will help us in New York and overall strengthen the quality of our farm system. … Our goal is to move the organization forward in the best way possible. To ensure that we have a far better season and each season beyond.”
The Mets are 47-66.
Mets Release Controversial Outfielder During Guardians Series