Byung-hyun Wears Red Sox

It becomes more probable, as indicated by Boston Red Sox manager Grady Little, that Byung-hyun Kim may return to his original position of a closer. Pedro Martinez however may not be able to come off the DL and take the mound at least by next week. To fill the absence, Kim will pitch as a starter against Pittsburgh on June 4.

Kim said, "I feel kind of disappointed," and continued, "I prepared quite a lot. I am excited to face a new challenge. I feel like becoming a rookie again."

From early this year, rumors were floating around that Kim might be traded to Boston. The Boston Red Sox adopted a "collective closer" system, changing the reliever dependent upon opponents. The system, however, collapsed without success. Even worse, the ML’s best right-handed thrower Martinez has suffered from frequent injuries. On the other hand, the Arizona Diamondbacks badly needed someone who could beef up its batting lineup.

Yet another reason for the trade was the disharmony between Arizona manger Bob Brenly and Kim.

This season, Kim has won only one game, losing five. The creaky team batting, however, contributed heavily to the five loses. Kim himself maintains a 3.56 ERA. At the Boston Red Sox, he is behind only Martinez (2.83). Other Red Sox pitchers have won more games, but are no match to Kim in terms of ERA.

Despite the expected position as a closer, Kim might take the other direction. Boston general Theo Epstein said through Kim’s agent. "Long-term, we view him as a starter, but based on the makeup of this club, there may still be a time when we need him to close.`` The June 4th game will test his future.

The new club of Kim is rich, giving on average a $3.63 million salary to its players. It is higher than Kim`s highest salary of $3.25 million. Its potential value is higher than the Diamondbacks, and was sold for $660 million, the ML’s record high price tag.

Boston has a lot of relationships with Korean players. In the past, Cho Jin-ho, Lee Sang-hoon, Sun Kim and Seung Song started their ML careers with the Red Sox. In total, 10 out of the 28 South Koreans have played for the team.

Notably, the Red Sox is a 100-year long rival of the New York Yankees. It is now vying with the Yankees by a 0.5-game difference for the lead. The Red Sox, however, have not won many World Series unlike its rival. The Yankees have claimed the title 24 times. After trading Babe Ruth in 1918 to the Yankees, it has since not won any titles.

This is the problem the Asian pitcher has to help resolve.

Hwan-Soo Zang zangpabo@donga.com