There’s always Korea. Or Japan. When a baseball player realizes reaching or sticking with the majors is unlikely, the sport is still an option halfway around the world.
As Darin Ruf was contemplating his future, he realized traveling to another continent could be a possibility. And it was.
After being traded from the Philadelphia Phillies to the Los Angeles Dodgers, Ruf’s contract was sold to the Seoul Lions of the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO). He spent three seasons there, 2017-2019, becoming one of the KBO’s best power hitters. But even before he was sent to Korea, Ruf had considered playing overseas at some point.
“I thought there was a good chance…when my time here was done, (I could) go to Japan or Korea; so I did research, planned on it in a way, considered it a real opportunity or possibility,” said Ruf, who has been with the San Francisco Giants since 2021. “It happened so late (in spring training) and so quick. A lot of things felt rushed. It wasn’t that I didn’t think it could happen, I was ready for it to happen.”
“It was definitely at a point in my career I needed and took advantage of, and it kind of catapulted into a few more years,” said Ruf.
Even so, Ruf was in for a whirlwind of traveling once his contract was sold.
