‘Turn around and return to the new foreigner’ Kiwoom, ‘153km left -handed’ Mercedes $ 280,000… Can you be a ‘firefighting’ in a burning house (SS attention)

Sports | baseball

(Sports Seoul | Reporter Lee So -young) Kiwoom has contracted with a new foreign pitcher CC Mercedes (31). He is a veteran left -handed pitcher with a Japanese professional baseball (NPB) to Taiwan League (CPBL) experience. I will soon enter Korea.

Kiwoom officially announced on the 30th that he requested the Korea Baseball Commission (KBO) for a waiver disclosure of foreign pitcher Kenny Rosenberg and recruited CC Mercedes as a new foreign pitcher for $ 280,000 (including transfer fees).

Kiwoom broke up with La Clan Wells, who was recruited as a short -term replacement player on the 23rd, and the existing foreign pitcher Kenny Rosenberg was also injured.

In the case of Wells, he made a total of four games, scoring an average ERA of 3.15, which was a great addition to the Kiwoom Mound, but he died of the contract for personal reasons. Mercedes is expected to act as a ‘firefighter’, while even Wells has left a big gap in the starting rotation.

Mercedes, a former Dominican Republic, signed an international amateur contract with Major League Tampa Bay in 2012 and began his professional life.

There is nothing left in the major leagues. Most of them stayed in the minor league single A. In 2017, he moved to Japanese professional baseball Yomiuri and entered the Asian stage.

I played for seven seasons in Yomiuri and Chiba Lotte. He scored 709.1 innings, 37 wins and 44 losses, and 3.10 ERA. In the 2025 season, he played 14 games in Taiwan’s professional baseball (CPBL) and scored 84 innings, with 6 wins and 3 losses and an average ERA of 2.57.

Mercedes, which has a 188cm and 82 kg physique, uses a variety of pitches such as fastballs, curves, sliders, and changeups.

In particular, it is not only a high pitching efficiency per inning, but also has a stable economy. Various change balls are also considered strengths.

Looking at CPBL Stats, Mercedes’ average restraint is 143 km / h and the highest restraint is 153 km / h. The changes in use are known as sliders, curves, changeups, and sinker balls.

Kiwoom Huh Seung -pil said, “Mercedes is a player who has been active in Japan and Taiwanese stages. He is a pitcher with a lot of experience in Asian baseball.

“I expect to add a sense of stability to the starter as it has been a starting pitcher in Japan for a long time and shows stable innings.”

Mercedes will join the team in early August after completing the administrative procedure, such as a visa issuance. sshong@sportsseoul.com