Former Phillie Tommy Joseph is headed to Korea

A 22-home run season doesn’t mean what it used to.

Former Phillies first baseman Tommy Joseph, who hit 21 homers in 2016 and 22 in 2017, has agreed to a one-year, $1 million deal to play in Korea, according to Jeff Passan.

This just isn’t the era for a major-leaguer whose lone defining skill is power, especially if first base is the only position you can play. It seems like everyone has power these days. There were exactly 100 players with 20+ home runs this past season. Just five years ago, in 2013, there were 70.

Question, for those who are more familiar with Asian baseball than I am: Is it just me, or does it seem that Korea has become now what Japan had the image of being in the 1980s, as the place American players go for a last hurrah?