CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – MAY 25: Erick Fedde #20 of the Chicago White Sox high-fives teammates after being pulled in the seventh inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Guaranteed Rate Field on May 25, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Griffin Quinn/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Lots of people were caught by surprise when the White Sox signed free agent pitcher Erick Fedde two years ago.

The rebuilding franchise gave the failed former first-rounder a two-year, $15 million contract to return from Korea, where he won 20 games for the NC Dinos. It proved to be one of the best moves the Sox have made in years.

Fedde went 7-4 with a 3.11 earned run average in 21 starts — not bad on a team that otherwise was 19-68 — before being traded to St. Louis as part of a three-team trade on July 29. That deal (which also included Michael Kopech and Tommy Pham) added corner infielder Miguel Vargas and teenaged infielders Jeral Perez and Alexander Albertus to the Sox’s inventory of under-25 players.

Vargas, who has produced a .923 OPS in 214 Triple-A games for the Dodgers and White Sox, appeared to turn a corner this season. He delivered 16 home runs in 138 games, including a second-half surge that saw him hit .267 with a .791 OPS after the All-Star break. Perez, a bat-first player blessed with quick hands, led the South Atlantic League with 22 homers.

That’s a nice return for what proved to be a $5 million investment in Fedde, who hasn’t been able to duplicate the consistency he showed in Chicago.The Cardinals offloaded him to Atlanta last July and he ended the season in a depth role with the Brewers.

Don’t be surprised if the White Sox make a similar play this season. Two pitchers on the KBO-winning Hanwha Eagles qualify as low-hanging free agent fruit and the Sox remain positioned to give them the same kind of runway they provided Fedde.

There are a lot bigger names expected to be shopped from Asian team this year, including third baseman Munetaka Murakami, corner infielder Kazuma Okamoto and undersized ace Tatsuya Imai. But Hanwha right-handers Ryan Weiss and Cody Ponce are also intriguing, especially for teams that don’t generally shop in the Rodeo Drive markets.

Both Weiss (6-4, 210) and Ponce (6-6, 255) are reasonable facsimiles of Fedde. They stand tall and throw hard, and like Fedde have learned new tricks in their time abroad.

With MLB teams looking to acquire pitching volume more than ever, it’s not out of the question contenders could carve out a place for Weiss or Ponce, hoping they wind up with the next Merrill Kelly or Colby Lewis. But the Cubs, for instance, wouldn’t provide the same kind of job security as the White Sox.

Weiss has an added hook. He’s a Midwest native who attended South Elgin High School, just west of Chicago, and developed into a standout at Wright State. Arizona drafted him in the fourth round in 2018 but he never got out of Triple-A with the Diamondbacks or Royals. He’s spent the last three seasons overseas, joining Hanwha in 2024 after stints in Taiwan and in the Atlantic League in 2023.

Weiss turns 29 in December. He was 16-5 with a 2.87 ERA in 30 starts last season, striking out 207 while compiling a 3.7 ratio of strikeouts to walks.

Weiss has a mid-90s fastball that spikes into the high-90s but has developed into more of a pure pitcher, working on both his command and the ability to control movement through a variety of pitch grips. He’s also spent his time away from major league affiliates working on his conditioning, and has become durable.

The 31-year-old Ponce, a second-round pick of Milwaukee in the 2015 draft, was even better than Weiss last season. He was 17-1 with a 1.89 ERA in 29 starts. He had a KBO record 252 strikeouts in 180 2/3 innings, with a 6.2-1 strikeout-walk ratio, capturing the pitching Triple Crown.

Ponce spent parts of 2020 and ’21 with Pittsburgh before jumping to Japan’s Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters in ’22. He spent three seasons in Japan before moving to the KBO, where everything seemed to click.

Ponce set KBO marks by earning 15 consecutive wins to start the season and also by amassing 200 strikeouts in his first 23 starts. His 18-strikeout start on May 17 was a record, breaking a Hyun-jin Ryu record that had stood since 2010.

His success lies in a fastball-cutter combination he throws from a three-quarters arm slot (think Ranger Suarez) and Zack Wheeleresque extension on his pitches. He is sure to attract a lot of attention from teams, giving him options beyond returning to Korea.

Weiss and Ponce are hardly the only KBO pitchers on the radar of MLB teams. Former big-league Drew Anderson used a triple-digit fastball to strike out 245 in 171 2/3 innings for the Samsung Lions after being released by Detroit in April. Ariel Jurado (Samsung) and Riley Thompson (NC Dinos) also put up a 3.45 or better ERA over at least 172 innings.

Former Cardinals pitcher James Naile is another candidate. He had a career season with the Kia Tigers, going 8-4 with a 2.25 ERA in 27 starts. Naile hoped to return to the United States after the 2024 season but suffered a broken jaw when hit with a line drive in August. He is looking for an opportunity as a starter but could fit as a bulk reliever.