Yoo Ji Ho
SEOUL, July 20 (Yonhap) — The Samsung Lions signed former major league pitcher Austin Voth on Monday as a short-term replacement following an injury.
The Lions said Voth will earn $150,000 on a six-week contract as a temporary replacement for starter Ariel Jurado.
Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) clubs are allowed to sign replacements for injured foreign players who are sidelined for six weeks or longer.
New Samsung Lions pitcher Austin Voth (left) poses with his general manager Lee Jong-yeol after signing with the club on July 20, 2026, in this photo provided by the Lions. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
Jurado was diagnosed with shoulder inflammation last week and is expected to miss at least six weeks. The Panamanian workhorse is third in the KBO with 107 innings and sixth with a 3.11 ERA.
Voth, 34, played 210 games in Major League Baseball (MLB), including 39 as a starter, with five clubs. Most recently, he played two games this year for the Toronto Blue Jays and one game for the Minnesota Twins.
Over his MLB career, Voth went 17-20 with a 4.84 ERA in 370 1/3 innings.
In Triple-A, the American right-hander compiled an 18-33 record with a 4.22 ERA in 99 appearances, including 91 starts.
He pitched for Japan’s Chiba Lotte Marines in 2025, going 3-9 with a 3.96 ERA in 22 games.
Voth has six pitches: four-seam fastball, cutter, sweeper, curveball, sinker and splitter.
The Lions said Voth recently passed his physical in South Korea and will soon join the rotation.
The Lions are in first place with a record of 53-33-2 (wins-losses-ties), two games ahead of KT Wiz. They have the second-lowest team ERA at 4.11.
The Lions’ rotation also added a new piece in former major leaguer Chris Paddack on July 11. Paddack threw six one-run innings of ball in his KBO debut on Saturday against the Lotte Giants.
Minnesota Twins reliever Austin Voth pitches against the Los Angeles Dodgers during a Major League Baseball regular-season game at Target Field in Minneapolis in June 23, 2026, in an Associated Press file photo. (Yonhap)
jeeho@yna.co.kr
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