Samsung Lions veteran slugger Park Byung-ho faced an unexpected turnaround ahead of the 2025 season.

In the recently announced salary contract, Park signed for 380 million won, the second-highest among non-FA and non-multi-year contractors in Samsung.스포츠토토

Many media reported this as a 'shock reduction', but the reality is different.

Park Byung-ho's previous salary of 700 million won was part of his FA contract with KT Wiz. From the 2025 season, his FA contract was terminated and he became a general salary contractor. Therefore, it is meaningless to simply compare the amount.

Last season, Park alternated between KT and Samsung, batting average of 0.231 and 23 home runs. Considering this, the annual salary of W380 million can be seen as an appropriate level.

Samsung is considered to have signed a reasonable contract that reflects its actual performance while showing respect for veteran players.

It is reasonable to view Park Byung-ho's new contract as a new start after the end of the FA contract, not a "shock reduction."

The second-highest salary in the team after ace Won Tae-in shows that Samsung still recognizes Park Byung-ho's value.

Attention is focusing on how Park Byung-ho will perform based on this contract in the 2025 season.

As a central hitter of the Korean Series team, fans are excited about whether his bat will be able to fire once again.