Baseball NSW congratulates Team Australia/Sydney Blue Sox pitcher and former BNSW State Development Officer Coen Wynne for signing a contract with the LG Twins of the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO), the top league in South Korea and one of the world’s “power three” of pro baseball competition.
Per Baseball.com.au, Wynne signed a Temporary Foreign Replacement Player deal as substitute for the Twins’ injured import Elieser Hernandez. The RHP’s deal with the Twins is projected to amount to $11,000 or 15.6 million won. Moreover, Wynne is arriving in Korea on 24 April.
A thigh injury had sidelined Hernandez since the 15th, per Chosun Biz, and the team expects his recovery to take six weeks. The Twins then moved quickly to sign his replacement, agreeing to terms with Wynne only six days after announcing the test results for Hernandez on the 16th.
Wynne had caught the Twins’ eye during his stint in international events during the previous season of the Australian Baseball League, and the Korean team invited him to join their Spring Training in Arizona in February.
The 26-year-old Wynne recounted his experiences with the Twins during their training.
“Spring training was intense and saw me throwing bullpens, participating in team defence, throwing live at bats against hitters and I finished off with me throwing a few innings in a scrimmage game,” he told Baseball.com.au.
“The feeling I got from the head of scouting department and coaches were that they were impressed with my performance during spring and wanted to keep in touch throughout the season,” Wynne added.
As a rookie in 2022-23, Wynne had already shown some promise, having earned a spot for Team Australia as an emergency call-up at the World Baseball Classic in Japan. He proceeded to pitch Team Australia to a win over China a day after his arrival.
In 2023-24, Wynne upped his production as a starter for the Blue Sox and he also played for Team Australia at the Premier12.
Then, Wynne further improved his play in 2024-25, where he played both as starter and reliever for the Sox. He posted a 2.35 ERA in 38.1 innings, with a WHIP of .934. He also earned a nomination for Pitcher of the Year while helping the Sox win the minor premiership.
Asked about his time with the Blue Sox, Wynne said, “The Blue Sox has been a large part of my development for the last three seasons. It’s given me a chance to sharpen my skills as both a starter and a reliever.”
Meanwhile, the Twins’ front office also explained their reasoning in signing Wynne to the deal.
“Rather than bringing in a player who is not currently active, it is better to take a player we have seen while testing,” Twins Director General Cha said. “It will be more comfortable and quicker for team adaptation if he spends time with our players at the camp.”
Moreover, the Twins would have found it challenging to find another player, whether in the US or Japan, who can play right away for six weeks while the injured Hernandez recovers. The Twins could have searched for replacement players in the US’ independent leagues, but finding a good pitcher who can immediately play might take a lot of time.
In Coen Wynne, the Twins might have found just the right player.
“[Wynne] is a starting resource from the Australian national team, and he has maintained his sense of competition by digesting actual games until recently,” a team official said. “[We] judged him to be the right person to replace Hernandez considering his training with the team for the purpose of actual test for the Asian quarter during the Arizona Spring Camp.”
The BNSW community wishes you all the best in your new adventure, Coen!