Twins sign Korean slugger Park to four-year deal

[December 02, 2015]  (Reuters) - South Korean slugger Park Byung-ho is joining Major League Baseball's Minnesota Twins after the team said on Tuesday that they had agreed to terms on a four-year, $12 million contract.

The Twins, who also hold a club option for 2020, won the rights to negotiate with the first baseman three weeks ago with a $12.85 million bid to Nexen Heroes of the Korea Baseball Organization.

Park joins a power-hungry Twins team that has not finished better than 10th in home runs in the 15-team American League since 2010.

The 29-year-old Park batted .343 (181-for-528) this season - his 10th in the KBO - while leading the league with 53 home runs and 146 runs batted in.

That eye-popping season capped off a remarkable four-year stretch that included 173 home runs, 492 RBI, 48 stolen bases and a .314 batting average.

His aggressiveness, however, came at a cost with 510 strikeouts in that four-year stretch, including 161 strikeouts over 528 at-bats this season.

(Reporting by Larry Fine in New York; Editing by Frank Pingue)

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