Former Phillies landing in South Korea

Aaron Altherr and Ben Lively once shared the clubhouse at Citizens Bank Park as teammates for the Philadelphia Phillies.

Now the two are among the foreign players who are on teams in the Korean Baseball Organization, which opened its coronavirus-delayed season last week in empty ballparks.

In case you are itching to watch live baseball — and are an extreme night owl or early riser — ESPN reached a deal to televise KBO games. The network is scheduled to broadcast six games per week, primarily airing on ESPN2 at 5:30 a.m. Tuesday through Friday, 4 a.m. on Saturday and 1 a.m. on Sunday.

In addition to Altherr and Lively, there are three other former Phillies in the league: outfielder Hyun Soo Kim and pitchers David Buchanan and Ricardo Pinto.

Altherr, an outfielder who played for the Phillies from 2014 until getting let go last season, was hitting .250 (2-for-8) with a solo homer through four games for the NC Dinos. The 29-year-old reportedly is making $800,000 in the KBO.

His homer came off the righthanded Lively in the season’s second game. Lively, who appeared for the Phils in 2017-18, took the loss for the Samsung Lions after allowing four runs on six hits in six innings. He struck out six and walked three. The 28-year-old is making $500,000 in his second season in Korean. He joined Samsung last August.

Buchanan, a right-hander who turns 31 Monday, also plays for Samsung. He lost his only start this season, giving up five runs on six hits in six innings. He struck out two and walked one.

He pitched for the Phillies in 2014-15 before a five-season stint with Yakult in Japan. He is earning $600,000 in the KBO.

Pinto, 26, had the most impressive debut of the ex-Phils. The right-hander allowed one run on three hits in 6 2/3 innings for the SK Wyverns. He struck out three and walked three.

He pitched in 25 games for the Phillies in 2017 and appeared in two games last season for Tampa Bay.

Kim, an outfielder, was the second South Korean-born player to play for the Phillies, joining pitcher Chan Ho Park.

He was acquired from Baltimore with pitcher Garrett Cleavinger in a trade for pitcher Jeremy Hellickson in July 2017. He hit just .230 with four RBIs in 40 games.

Following that season he returned to South Korea, where he had starred for Doosan, and joined the LG Twins. Last season, he hit .304 with 11 homers and 82 RBI in 140 games. He was hitting .375 (6-for-16) with a homer and three RBIs through four games this season.

One former Phillies player who starred in the KBO has returned to the United States this season. First baseman/outfielder Darin Ruf was a non-roster invitee to spring training with the San Francisco Giants.

Over the previous three seasons, he combined to hit .313 with 86 homers, 350 RBIs and a .968 OPS with Samsung. Last season, Ruf hit .292 with 22 homers and 101 RBIs, his worst season in South Korea.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Outfielder Aaron Altherr is one of five former Philadelphia Phillies who are playing in the Korean Baseball Organization.