Korean Jobs" total contract worth 62 million! LG twins beat Dean to become the highest paid foreign gun in KBO history

Dean. (File photo, Associated Press)

[Sports Center/Comprehensive Report] The Korean professional LG Twins announced today that they will retain the 33-year-old American foreign player Austin Dean with a one-year contract worth US$2 million (approximately NT$62.79 million). Next year will be his fifth season in South Korea. Dean has also become the highest-paid foreign player in Korean professional history.

Dean played 144 games this year, knocked in 180 hits, and surrendered 41 home runs, which was the best in LG team history and ranked third in the entire Korean professional league. He contributed 127 RBIs. His hitting measurements were 0.331/0.347/0.635, and his overall offensive index (OPS) was 1.062, which was the best in the Korean professional league.

Since moving to the Korean professional LG Twins in 2023, Dean has accumulated 127 home runs, 449 RBIs, and an average batting average of 0.320 during four years in the Korean professional league. Dean's salary last year was US$1.8 million, which was tied for the highest salary among Korean professionals. Now he will stay with LG Twins with a one-year contract of US$2 million.

Dean has become the most expensive foreign player in Korean professional history, and the highest annual salary of a foreign player in Korean professional history was the US$2.1 million contract signed by former Doosan Bears player Dustin Nippert in 2017.

In addition, Dean played in the Major League with the Marlins, Cardinals, and Giants. In his five-year major league career, he played in 126 games, accumulating 11 home runs, 42 RBIs, and an average batting average of 0.228.