International Dodgers prospect is chasing the legacy Chan Ho Park and Hyun-Jin Ryu built

In a minor-league system as deep as the Los Angeles Dodgers', Hyun-Seok Jang looked like an interesting name on this winter's Rule 5 Draft protection list. But, the more I dig into his story, the more I'm convinced he could be one of the most important decisions Los Angeles makes this offseason.

Three years ago, Jang was widely expected to be the No. 1 pick in the KBO draft coming out of high school. He skipped the draft, signed with the Dodgers for $900,000 and has spent three years developing in the United States.

During that time he also helped South Korea win Asian Games gold to earn his military exemption, and became a national hero. Now 22, he's piled up 230 strikeouts in 158⅔ career innings with an upper-90s fastball and a deep mix of secondary pitches and has given the Dodgers something to think about in a few weeks.

Why the Dodgers should protect Hyun-Seok Jang from the Rule 5 Draft

His 2026 line won't wow anyone at first glance, a 5.42 ERA over 81⅓ innings in 20 outings (18 starts), across Low-A and High-A, with more than a month lost to an undisclosed injury. Dig a little deeper, though, and the growth is there. His walk rate was north of 18% at Low-A in 2025 and dropped into single digits this season, and in his late look at High-A, he struck out nearly 38% of the hitters he faced while walking under 5%. That's the kind of command jump you see when a power arm starts to mature, and most pitchers really start hitting their prime in their mid-20's.

What sold me, though, is everything that you won't see when you look at his stats, and likely what the Dodgers are going to bet on if they protect him. In a recent interview with Bat Boys Baseball, Jang spoke nearly flawless English, a year (or two, it says 2024 in the interview) after barely speaking the language at all, and he credited his teammates for teaching him. He talked about adding a pause to his leg kick to help his balance after training alongside Yoshinobu Yamamoto this past winter, and even joked that he's picked up some Spanish slang in the clubhouse.

You might be wondering why that's important, but to me it tells me about the make-up and character of the kid. I spent a season playing in the KBO, and it was on me to learn the language, go to team dinners and connect with my teammates. Over my career, I watched international players who stayed in their bubble struggle to fit in, and the ones who leaned in by learning English, learning from older players and hung out in the clubhouse often — they thrived. Jang is clearly the second kind, and that's a player an organization should be continuing to invest in.

He's also a reminder of what the Dodgers have built. Jang has said he grew up watching Hyun-Jin Ryu pitch on TV and thanked Ryu and Chan Ho Park "for showing the way before me." From Park and Ryu to Shohei Ohtani, Roki Sasaki and Yamamoto, Asian stars have flourished in Los Angeles, and fans across Asia have embraced the Dodgers right back. That reputation is a recruiting tool, and letting a homegrown Korean arm walk out the door could be sending the wrong message to the next KBO star thinking of signing with LA.

Would another team actually take him in the Rule 5 Draft? Maybe, maybe not. But even if the risk is small, the upside of a 22-year-old with this stuff, this work ethic and this connection to the organization is too valuable to gamble on for $100,000. I hope the Dodgers protect him, and I hope he gets the chance to follow Park and Ryu all the way to Dodger Stadium.

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