Byungho Park, the Korean slugger who failed to make much of a mark with the Twins, is headed back to his homeland, according to a report from Jeeho Yoo of Yonhap News.
Yoo reported Park will return to Nexen, a team for which he hit more than 50 home runs in both 2014 and 2015 before signing with the Twins. Yoo said Nexen issued a press release on the matter.
Park, 31, played briefly for the Twins in 2016, but spent all last season at Class AAA Rochester, hitting .253 with 14 home runs. He was taken off the 40-man roster early in 2017 by new Twins Chief Baseball Officer Derek Falvey and cleared waivers.
There was no official word from the Twins after Yoo reported Park, a first baseman and designated hitter, signed a one-year, $1.4 million deal with Nexen.
Park signed a four-year, $12 million deal with the Twins in 2016, so the team could be off the hook for the two years and $6.5 million remaining before their buyout option before the 2020 season, unless it had to pay a buyout. The Twins had to pay Nexen nearly $13 million in a posting fee to sign him.
Park hit 12 home runs and hit .191 for the Twins in 2016 before he was sent to Rochester.
