According to reports out of Korea (link is in Korean), Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Jung Ho Kang has been denied his work visa today to enter the United States and it is unknown when he could eventually receive his visa. Kang received a suspended sentence in his DUI case in Seoul on March 2nd and has been waiting on his visa since then. The Pirates recently placed him on the restricted list due to the length of the process. That opened up a 40-man roster spot, which can be filled at any time, while Kang still remains property of the Pirates.
Our own Alan Saunders is at LECOM today waiting on a statement from the Pirates. We will post an update here with any additional information.
UPDATE 12:28 PM: The Pirates haven’t issued a statement yet regarding today’s news, but Alan Saunders caught up with David Freese and asked him about the possibility of getting more time at third base than anticipated. Freese had the following quote:
“I haven’t even seen anything or heard anything from the Pirates or anybody, so I’m not even really going to speak on the matter. In regards to my ability to go out there and play, it’s just the same as usual, the same business for me in the spring. We’ll probably get more information about who’s starting on Opening Day and who’s going to be playing third as we get close to it, but out of respect to the whole situation, I don’t really know enough to speak on it. My focus [has been] just doing what I do. I’ve tried to explain that, even if he was here, obviously not manning third, but being out on the diamond and playing, my schedule would probably be pretty similar or the exact same.”
UPDATE #2: 3:15 PM: Pirates president Frank Coonelly provided a statement on Kang:
Statement from #Pirates president Frank Coonelly on Jung Ho Kang: pic.twitter.com/AFCm7WGQf1
— Alan Saunders (@ASaunders_PGH) March 24, 2017
