Kiwoom stirs stove league with signings of Puig and Cardenas

[Anchor]

The professional baseball team Kiwoom has heated up the stove league by signing a controversial foreign players.

The team has made headlines by signing Puig, who is embroiled in an illegal gambling controversy, and Cardenas, who has faced allegations of poor work ethic.

This is a report by Lee Seong-hoon.

[Report]

Puig, known for his wild image and a former teammate of Ryu Hyun-jin with the Dodgers, is returning to the domestic league after three years.

In 2022, Puig hit 21 home runs and had 73 RBIs, becoming a key player for Kiwoom, and he was so fond of Korea that he even learned to speak Korean.

[Puig/Interview at the time: "Korea. I love you!"]

However, the illegal gambling controversy led to the failure of his re-signing with Kiwoom.

Kiwoom confirmed through an agent that there were no issues regarding the controversial illegal gambling involvement, and decided to sign Puig.

With Puig returning to the domestic league after three years, the matchup between him and Ryu Hyun-jin is emerging as the top attraction for next year.

The Kiwoom team has also signed Cardenas, who is at the center of a poor work ethic controversy.

Cardenas, who changed his name from Cadenas, made a strong impression with a big home run last July.

However, he was released by Samsung after just seven games for his low work ethic play cited to a side injury.

[Commentary: "There is no reason to be this slow. You can see Lee Seung-hyun's expression..."]

Although the signing is aimed at strengthening the team’s batting lineup, which has the lowest team batting average, filling the spots with two foreign players is an unusual decision.

Expectations and concerns are mixed regarding Kiwoom's bold move in signing these controversial players.

This is KBS News, Lee Seong-hoon.