Former MLB pitcher released by Doosan Bears

Former Major League Baseball (MLB) right-hander Kim Sun-woo on Monday was released by the Doosan Bears in the top South Korean league.

The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) club announced that they decided not to retain the 36-year-old pitcher for next season. Kim immediately became a free agent but faces a career crossroads after two straight sub-par seasons.

He was just 5-6 this year with a 5.52 ERA in 17 appearances, spanning 60 1/3 innings. Last year, Kim went 6-9 with a 4.52 ERA in 163 1/3 innings.

Kim joined the Bears in 2008 after spending six seasons in the big leagues with the Boston Red Sox, the Montreal Expos -- which later became the Washington Nationals -- the Colorado Rockies and the Cincinnati Reds. From 2009 to 2011, Kim averaged more than 13 wins a season as the spiritual leader in the Bears' rotation.

In 2011, he was second in the KBO with 16 victories and had a 3.13 ERA.

In his MLB career, Kim was 13-13 in 337 innings in 118 appearances, 38 of them starts.

The Bears also announced on Monday that they will not bring back American right-hander Derek Hankins. The career U.S. minor leaguer joined the team in July this year to replace the ineffective Garrett Olson.

After a mediocre regular season as a starter, Hankins enjoyed a fine playoff run as a reliever. He strung together 10 1/3 scoreless innings at one point in the postseason but was the losing pitcher in the decisive seventh game of the Korean Series against the Samsung Lions.

(Yonhap News)