03/24: Hee...Seop...Aww, Nuts!
Posted by: James
This could be a very significant move in the AL playoff race this year as the Red Sox claimed Hee-Seop Choi off waivers.
I was hoping that the Yankees would take a shot at him when there were rumors that the Dodgers would non-tender him last season. That proved not to be the case but the things I liked about him then ring true today. He is young and I believe that he is good. The move is great for the Red Sox in two ways: A) It gives them insurance in case Mike Lowell is all washed up as they can just move Kevin Youkilis back to third while slotting Choi in at first and B) the move gives them backup in case Youkilis and J.T. Snow are the ones who can't hit. And of course, just having a lefty masher who plays good defense on the bench is still a great asset and as much as I hate that stupid Boy Wonder title that Epstein gets, he is certainly a very capable GM. Very nice move.
A native of Chun Nam, South Korea, Choi has played all or part of four major league seasons with the Cubs (2002-03), Marlins (2004) and Dodgers (2004-05). The first Korean-born position player to appear in a major league game when he made his big league debut with the Cubs September 8, 2002, Choi is a career .240 hitter with 40 home runs, 120 RBI and a .349 on-base percentage in 363 major league games.
The left-handed batter and thrower boasts a career .992 fielding percentage at first base, committing only 18 errors in 2,387 total chances. Choi made just two errors in 762 total chances at first base in 2005 with the Dodgers, tied for the second-best fielding percentage (.997) among all National League first basemen with 750 or more total chances. The 27-year-old Choi last season matched his career high by hitting 15 home runs for the second straight year, batting .253 with 15 doubles and 42 RBI in 133 games for the Dodgers. He became the first major league player of Asian descent to homer three times in a game when he did so June 12 vs. Minnesota.
The left-handed batter and thrower boasts a career .992 fielding percentage at first base, committing only 18 errors in 2,387 total chances. Choi made just two errors in 762 total chances at first base in 2005 with the Dodgers, tied for the second-best fielding percentage (.997) among all National League first basemen with 750 or more total chances. The 27-year-old Choi last season matched his career high by hitting 15 home runs for the second straight year, batting .253 with 15 doubles and 42 RBI in 133 games for the Dodgers. He became the first major league player of Asian descent to homer three times in a game when he did so June 12 vs. Minnesota.
I was hoping that the Yankees would take a shot at him when there were rumors that the Dodgers would non-tender him last season. That proved not to be the case but the things I liked about him then ring true today. He is young and I believe that he is good. The move is great for the Red Sox in two ways: A) It gives them insurance in case Mike Lowell is all washed up as they can just move Kevin Youkilis back to third while slotting Choi in at first and B) the move gives them backup in case Youkilis and J.T. Snow are the ones who can't hit. And of course, just having a lefty masher who plays good defense on the bench is still a great asset and as much as I hate that stupid Boy Wonder title that Epstein gets, he is certainly a very capable GM. Very nice move.
