Taiwanese right-hander Wang Chien-ming (王建民) has signed a one-year contract to rejoin the Washington Nationals that will guarantee him a base salary of US$1 million and give him a chance to earn another US$4 million in incentives, Wang’s US-based agent Alan Chang said in a statement early yesterday.
“Wang has expressed gratitude to the Nationals for its recognition and confidence in his ability. He is currently working on individual training in Taiwan and is scheduled to be back in the US early next year,” Chang said in the press release.
Wang, who played for the New York Yankees before being released late last year, signed with the Nationals in February for a year with a guaranteed US$2 million salary.
PHOTO: CHANG CHIA-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
However, he has been in rehabilitation for the past 15 months and has not pitched for the Nationals in a Major League Baseball (MLB) game, only appearing in two instructional league games in October.
Wang was not offered a contract by the Nationals before the deadline of Dec. 3 and therefore became a free agent.
According to an MLB report published early yesterday, Wang had indicated to his agent that he wanted to stay with the Nationals because of the way they treated him while he was recovering from surgery to his right shoulder.
Although Wang will receive only half the guaranteed salary of his previous contract, he can secure up to US$4 million in incentives next season.
Wang will be paid US$250,000 if he stays on the 25-man roster for more than 30 days, a further US$250,000 if he stays for 30 more days, and an additional US$250,000 if he stays for another 30 days after that, according to the contract.
The incentives will be based on how many games Wang appears in as a starting pitcher.
He will earn an extra US$100,000 for between 10 and 19 games, US$150,000 for between 20 and 21 games, US$200,000 for his 22nd starting job and US$300,000 for between 23 and 27 games.
Wang will receive as much as US$600,000 if he wins any MLB award, including US$200,000 for the Comeback Player of the Year award.
Wang won more games than any other big league pitcher (38) between 2006 and 2007, but his injuries have limited him to just 27 appearances over the past two years.
In his last year with the Yankees, Wang was 1-6 with an atrocious 9.64 ERA before being shut down for the season because of his shoulder.
Commenting on the new contract, Wang said: “I am very happy because I had no team last year.”
“The Nationals are signing me and bringing me back to major league baseball, and they are letting me recover without putting any pressure on me, so I can let my arm heal completely before I get back out on the pitch,” the Taiwanese pitcher said.
Wang also said that he should be able to return in April or May next year, and that he currently is doing weight training and rehabilitation six to eight hours a day.
Wang also said he has started pitching again.
He said that both his speed and his different types of pitches are looking good.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College