Ryu, who always said he wanted to finish his career back home, said he declined down the offer because he was afraid his effectiveness would wane over the course of a multiyear deal. One imagines he also had some one-year offers to pick from, but that went unmentioned. Ryu signed an eight-year deal to return to the Hanwha Eagles, though the length of the contract appears to be for bookkeeping reasons.

The Hanwha Eagles have said nothing is confirmed, but is looking likely Jin Ryu will return to his former team in the KBO. According to Naver Sports, the deal is worth a little under $13 million over 4 years. Jin Ryu pitched for the Eagles from 2006-2012 and has said in the past he would finish his baseball career with the team. In his 7 seasons with the Eagles, Jin Ryu posted a 2.80 ERA, 1.15 WHIP over 181 starts. The 36-year-old lefty, who came back from Tommy John surgery last season, was unable to find a deal in MLB after spending the last 4 seasons with the Blue Jays. Last season, he made 11 starts and posted a 3.46 ERA, 1.29 WHIP across 52 innings. A reunion with the Hanwha Eagles, the team that began his professional career, seems pretty fitting.

Ryu told reporters at the conclusion of last year that he would like to pitch in the majors again this upcoming season, but the soon-to-be 37-year-old southpaw remains unsigned at the outset of spring training. He made a successful return last year from Tommy John surgery, posting a serviceable 3.46 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 38/14 K/BB ratio across 52 innings (11 starts) for the Blue Jays. However, it seems far more likely that he’ll return to Korea, where he spent the first seven years of his professional career, for the remainder of his baseball life.

There had been rumblings that Ryu would head back overseas, but it sounds like he’s got his heart set on returning to Major League Baseball. Coming back from Tommy John surgery, Ryu made 11 starts for the Blue Jays in 2023 — posting a 3.46 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and a 38/14 K/BB ratio across 52 innings. He’ll generate enough interest on the open market that he should be able to come away with a two-year contract this winter.