Former Angels Slugger to Pause Baseball Career for Military Service

In December 2015, the Angels claimed first baseman/outfielder Ji-Man Choi off waivers from the Baltimore Orioles. Choi made the Angels' Opening Day roster out of spring training — his first time ever on a team's active roster — and was designated for assignment twice in 2016 before leaving the organization as a free agent.

Choi played an unmemorable 54 games as an Angel. He hit five home runs, drove in 12, and slashed .170/.271/.339 (68 OPS+) for a team that finished under .500 for the first of what would be nine straight seasons.

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In a sign of how things have changed in a decade, Choi appears poised to retire from MLB with more home runs and RBIs than all but one Korean-born player.

Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported Sunday that Choi is returning to his home country of South Korea to begin 21 months of mandatory military service.

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A slugging first baseman with power and patience, Choi enjoyed his best seasons with the Rays from 2018-22. He slashed .245/.352/.431 while hitting 52 home runs and driving in 203 in 414 games as a platoon bat.

In addition to the Angels and Rays, Choi also played for the New York Yankees, Milwaukee Brewers, Pittsburgh Pirates and San Diego Padres from 2016-23.

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Choi resurfaced last year with the New York Mets but did not see action in the majors after playing 26 games with Triple-A Syracuse, slashing .191/.317/.357. He was released in July and did not sign a new contract for the 2025 season.

According to Topkin, Choi hopes to resume his playing career in the KBO, Korea's top professional league, after his military service is complete.

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If Choi has played his final MLB game, he'll retire with 67 career home runs, 238 RBIs, and a .234/.338/.426 slash line in 525 career games. He appeared in an additional 29 postseason games, all with the Rays, slashing .221/.398/.412 with four home runs and six RBIs in 68 at-bats.

Although those are modest career totals in the context of all MLB players, they place Choi among the best hitters ever to emerge from Korea.

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Choi's 525 games played are the third-most among all Korean-born players in MLB history, behind only former Padres infielder Ha-Seong Kim (540) and outfielder Shin-Soo Choo (1,652).

His 67 home runs, 238 RBIs and 93 doubles rank second only to Choo. His 4.8 Wins Above Replacement, including pitchers, rank eighth all-time among Koreans in MLB.

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