'I will be ready for the WBC,' says Oh Seung-hwan

'I will be ready for the WBC,' says Oh Seung-hwan. January. 07, 2017 07:04. by Heon-Jae Lee uni@donga.com. “It is not up to my decision whether I will play for the Korean team in the upcoming World Baseball Classic. All I have to do is to be ready for games in the WBC," St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Oh Seung-hwan told reporters Friday before taking off to Miami in Florida for his off season training practice.

Amid heated debate over Oh’s appearance in the WBC, the 35-year-old major league pitcher has made his commitment to maintain his physical condition whether he joins Team Korea or not.

Oh has nothing to lose if he does not play in the WBC, better for him to have more time to prepare for the next season. If called to join a national team for the WBC, Oh has to be ready to compete in WBC games starting in early March before the next major league season kicks off. In addition, he has to travel across the Pacific, back and forth from Korea and Japan to the U.S. He has to deal with physical stamina and injury while playing in the WBC. If not put in the national team, he would have luxury of time to control his physical condition to prepare for the next major league season.

This upcoming season has a significant meaning to Oh. Oh’s 2-year deal with Cardinals ends this year and Oh is set off to become a free agent. If he finishes a new season with similar performance of the previous season (six wins and three losses with 19 saves and a 1.92 ERA), Oh will be insured to have multi-year deals worth more than 10 million dollars a year. In recent days, major league pitchers’ values are going up. Aroldis Chapman went to the Yankees on a five-year, 86-million-dollar deal, while Kenley Jansen signed a five-year, 80-million-dollar deal with the Dodgers.

Oh has shown his strong willingness to play for the national team. “It is a personal glory to be named to the national team," Oh said in the previous interview with the Dong-A Ilbo. "I understand the opposition on putting me in the team, but I will do my best for the team.”

Korean national team manager Kim In-sik wants to put Oh in the team. Oh will be Kim’s best reliever, no match to other players. However, the public sentiment is against him after his involvement in illegal gambling in late 2015. Amid public opposition on putting a player involved in a public scandal in a national team, Kim has not made up his mind yet. His coaches agreed to bring Oh to the WBC in an internal meeting on Wednesday. Unfortunately, it was not announced.

Leaving for the U.S., Oh told reporters his goals as a reliever this season. “More saves help the team,” he said. “Cardinals will be strong this season and we will make it into a postseason series. I would like to play in the World Series.”