Kyle Hart, a left-hander who played for the NC Dinos in the 2024 season, is drawing attention from the Milwaukee Brewers.스포츠토토

The U.S. "Sports Illustrated" said on the 27th (Korea time) that Milwaukee has been connected to Hart, an interesting pitcher who recently revived in the KBO.

"The Milwaukee Brewers had a quiet offseason. Instead of adding more players, they lost a few key players," SI said. "We failed to renew contract with Willy Adames, who moved to the San Francisco Giants, and traded Devin Williams to the New York Yankees, but did not receive much money."

"One of the things Milwaukee should do before the season is reinforce its pitching staff, and Hart, who has played in KBO for several years, is currently available for recruitment," he said.

Hart was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 2016 rookie draft. In the major leagues, he pitched in four games, losing one and posting a 15.55 ERA without a win. In the minor leagues, he was 42-47 with a 3.72 ERA in 143 games.

While moving around in the minor leagues, Hart chose to go to the KBO League. Ahead of the 2024 season, he signed a total of 900,000 dollars (down payment of 200,000 dollars, annual salary of 500,000 dollars, and option of 200,000 dollars) with NC. "Heart has a lot of experience on the mound and is good at psychological warfare with batters and is a type of player who throws efficient pitching," said Lim Sun-nam, NC's general manager. "Heart is expected to be a strong supporter of the 24-season pitching staff as Castano and left-handed starting duo."

Hart said, "I'm honored to be a part of the NC Dinos. I can't wait for the moment when I'm with my passionate fans on the mound at Changwon NC Park. I want to become a good team player and achieve as many wins as possible with my team members."

He literally "bombed" the Korean league. He pitched in 26 games, recording 13 wins, three losses and an earned run average of 2.69. He sought the Triple Crown, but suffered an injury at the end of the season and displayed poor performance by allowing nine runs in nine innings in the last two games. Nevertheless, he ranked first in strikeouts (182), second in ERA, and third in multiple wins.

As a result of his outstanding performance, he was named the winner of the Choi Dong-won Award and the 2024 Golden Glove Pitcher category. After the season ended, NC sought to renew the contract with Hart. However, Hart is re-challenging in the Major League.

"The news is that Milwaukee once targeted Garrett Crochet and is interested in left-hander Kyle Hart, who recently had a successful season in Korea. This shows that Milwaukee is still not satisfied with the starting rotation depth," SI said.

"Heart can be an important part of Milwaukee's starting lineup to continue its success in 2024. Milwaukee needs additional pitchers, and Hart has the potential to be an ideal option," he said.

Prior to Hearts, there are seniors who achieved the myth of KBO reverse export. Representative players are Merrill Kelly (Arizona Diamondbacks) and Eric Peddy (St. Louis Cardinals).

Kelly played four seasons with the SK Wyverns (now SSG Landers) with a 48-32 record with a 3.86 ERA. He returned to the big leagues in 2019 and was reborn as a luxury starting resource with a 53-44 record with a 3.82 ERA over six seasons until last year. He played a whopping 200 ⅓ innings in 2022, and led his team to second place in the World Series in 2023.

Peddy is one of the best foreign pitchers in the KBO League. After joining the NC Dinosaurs in 2023, he flew by with 20-6 losses and an earned run average of 2.00. He ranked first in multiple wins, ERA, innings (180 ⅓), and strikeouts (209). He swept all the awards including Choi Dong-won Award, pitcher's defense award, Golden Glove, and league MVP. After finishing the season, he returned to the Major League and posted 9 wins, 9 losses and an earned run average of 3.30.