SSG Landers sign Robert Dugger on one-year, $900,000 deal

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SSG Landers sign Robert Dugger on one-year, $900,000 deal

Published: 28 Nov. 2023, 15:23

Robert Dugger. [SCREENCAPTURE FROM MLB.COM]

The SSG Landers signed American pitcher Robert Dugger on a one-year deal worth up to $900,000 on Tuesday.

The 28-year-old right-hander will earn $650,000 in guaranteed salary with a $100,000 signing bonus and up to $150,000 in incentives.

SSG Landers appoint Lee Soong-yong as manager

Dugger will join the Landers from a career in the minors and brief stint in the MLB.

He comes to Korea from a season in the minor leagues with Round Rock Express, the Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers, this year’s World Series champions.

Dugger has a minors career 4.21 ERA with 39 wins and 42 losses over seven years since his minor league debut in 2016.

He has played for several MLB teams, pitching for the Miami Marlins, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays and Cincinnati Reds across four seasons. He was promoted to the majors in 2019 but has zero MLB wins, recording a 7.17 ERA over seven big league appearances.

SSG said the team recruited Dugger for his powerful fastball and stable play, according to multiple reports, and earlier parted ways with left-handed pitcher Kirk McCarty after one season, according to Yonhap.

Foreign players in the KBO can only be signed to one-year contracts, with each club allowed to sign up to three players. At least one of those has to be a position player, so teams nearly always sign two foreign pitchers and a slugger, although there’s been a shift toward a wider range of non-pitching roles in recent years.

Foreign player salaries are capped at $1 million in the first year, but can be increased beyond that threshold if a player is re-signed by the same club.

BY MARY YANG AND JIM BULLEY [[email protected]]