[Sportschosun, Reporter Kim Soo-hyun] Former baseball player Shin-Soo Choo drew attention after revealing the signing bonus he received when he entered Major League Baseball (MLB) and how his salary later rose sharply.
On the 10th, Kstar’s official social media channel posted a preview clip of "What Are You Leaving It For?" airing at 8 p.m. that day.
The released video showed MC Lee Young-ja asking Choo, Byung-hyun Kim, and Seung-hwan Oh about the signing bonuses they received during their MLB careers.
Lee asked, "How much was your signing bonus when you played in MLB?" Choo and Oh then replied in unison, "Byung-hyun Kim got the most."
Taken aback by the unexpected attention, Kim smiled awkwardly. He then spoke about his own signing bonus, saying, "I heard it was the highest for an amateur player."
Kim is known to have received a $2.25 million signing bonus when he entered MLB. The program said this was worth about 3 billion won at today’s exchange rate, drawing surprise.
Choo also candidly revealed his own signing bonus. He said, "I received $1.35 million as a signing bonus."
Even then, Choo was highly regarded, and he went on to prove his value with steady performances in MLB. Known by the nickname "Choo Choo Train," he cemented his place with strong hitting and excellent baserunning.
In particular, Choo did not stop at the signing bonus he received at debut. Through consistent performance, he significantly increased his market value.
The broadcast also said that Choo later raised his annual salary dramatically, eventually earning about 160 billion won a year, which surprised the cast.
Meanwhile, Choo married Ha Won-mi in 2004, and they have two sons and one daughter.
The couple also drew attention by revealing the enormous size of their U.S. home, which spans about 5,500 pyeong, on television.
shyun@sportschosun.com
This article has been translated by GripLabs Mingo AI.
