Si-Hwan Roh was born on December 3, 2000 in Ulsan, South Korea’s eighth largest city. His family moved to Busan when he was a child, and Roh ended up attending Kyungnam High School, a college prep school known for fielding one of South Korea’s best high school baseball teams year after year. Serving as the team’s clean-up hitter and ace pitcher, he was selected by the Hanwa Eagles in the 2019 KBO Rookie Draft.
The 18-year-old rookie didn’t exactly get off to a quick start as a professional. Many were
expecting an all-star season, but Roh hit .186/.241/.260 in 91 games instead. He improved slightly in 2020, hitting .220/.298/.387 in 106 games, but fans and team executives still expected more. Finally, in 2021, the infielder began hitting his stride. Appearing in 107 games, he hit .271/.386/.466 with 18 doubles, 1 triple, 18 home runs, 5 stolen bases, and 73 walks to 107 strikeouts; the 20-year-old seemed well on his way to hitting 20 home runs, but a broken toe sustained near the end of the season ended his pursuit of that benchmark.
That off-season, Roh changed his training routine to include more weightlifting, but dealt with nagging lower body injuries during the 2022 season that didn’t cause him to miss much time but affected his production. In 115 games, Roh hit .281/.355/.382 with 24 doubles, 1 triple, 6 home runs, 6 stolen bases, and 48 walks to 95 strikeouts. He modified training schedule that winter, building lean muscle while losing some excess weight, and when he returned to the Eagles for the 2023 season, finally had the breakout season many knew he was capable of having. Appearing in 131 games, Roh hit .298/.388/.541 with 30 doubles, 1 triple, 30 home runs, 2 stolen bases, and 74 walks to 118 strikeouts, his 31 home runs leading the KBO.
The 2023 season was not simply a blip, and represented a new paradigm for the young Eagles infielder. In 2024, he appeared in 136 games and hit .272/.356/.454 with 20 doubles, 2 triples, 24 home runs, 6 stolen bases, and 60 walks to 129 strikeouts. In 2025, he appeared in 144 games and hit .260/.354/.497 with 28 doubles, 2 triples, 32 home runs, 14 stolen bases, and 70 walks to 125 stakeouts, ending the season the runner-up in MVP voting to Cody Ponce.
In February 2026, Roh signed an 11-year, ₩30.7 billion (~$21.3 million) contract extension with the Eagles, the largest and longest contract in KBO history, keeping him with the team until 2037; it did, however, contain a specific clause that allowed the infielder to opt-out of the contract after one season to explore an MLB posting. The 25-year-old would go on to appear in 3 games for the South Korean team during the World Baseball classic, drawing a walk, stealing a base, and striking out twice, and would then hit .283/.360/.505 for the Eagles, logging 21 doubles, 2 triples, 29 home runs, 3 stolen bases, and drawing 51 walks to 147 strikeouts.
At the plate, the 6’0”, 210-pound Roh stands slightly open, holding his hands high at the eyes and wrapping his bat behind his head at roughly 2:00. He swings with a moderate leg lift and has an angular, upper-cutty swing path that maximizes flyballs. He does more damage against low pitches, fully extending and lifting them either to his pull-side or back up the middle. Even on pitches that he is able to hit squarely for home runs, Roh rarely produces exit velocities exceeding 95 MPH. Earlier in his career, he had problems with making contact, posting a 59.8% Contact% in his rookie season, but the right-hander has improved in that regard, running a mid-70% Contact% in the aggregate since.
Roh has primarily been Hanwa’s third baseman but has some time playing first base and shortstop as well. He is considered a good defender, one of, if not the, best defensive third basemen in the KBO. He shows quick reactions, has a lot of range, and has a strong arm. Earlier in his career, he was considered a poor defender- especially in 2022 when he began putting on muscle and suffered from lower body injuries- but Roh continued improving on his defense year after year. He has the ability to play shortstop, but does not have the experience to play the position in any long-term capacity.
