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The big league debut date has been decided for outfielder Jackson Cholio (20), who made headlines by signing a large eight-year contract worth $82 million (about 109.8 billion won) with Milwaukee without making his major league debut.

Newsweek, a U.S. news magazine, quoted a Milwaukee official as saying on the 20th (Korea Standard Time) that "Chulio has been confirmed to play as an outfielder in the opening game." He is the most prolific opener since Robin Yoon in 1974. He is a young player. If he plays center field in an opening game, he will become the third youngest player to play center field in an opening game in Milwaukee since 1900

A native of Venezuela, Julio signed with Milwaukee in 2021 when he was 17. The down payment he received at the time was $1.9 million (about W2.5 billion), indicating how high the club's expectations for Julio were.

Churio, who moved to the U.S. in 2022 and started his professional career in the minor leagues due to his age, started at Single A and experienced Double A, recording an outstanding batting average of 0.288, 20 homers, 75 RBIs and 16 steals in his first year as a professional. His OPS, which combined his on-base plus slugging percentage, was also good at 0.80.

I performed better last year, the second season of the minor league.

Starting with Double A last year, Julio had a batting average of 0.282, 22 homers, 91 RBIs and 44 steals, as he experienced Triple A, the highest level in the Minor League. His OPS was also good at 0.805.

U.S. media including Newsweek said, "Chuo's ability to play outfield defense and steal more than 20 bases in a season is unmatched based on his fast power." That's why Milwaukee signed an eight-year, $80 million contract to a kid who hasn't even made his Major League debut.

The eight-year, $80 million contract signed by Churio and Milwaukee includes two club options, making it the best contract ever signed by a player with no major league experience.

Julio is set to make his debut in the big league, but his performance in this spring camp has fallen short of expectations. As of Tuesday, he played in a total of 14 games in the spring camp, recording a batting average of 0.286 and three RBIs. He has not displayed any of his slugging ability and ability to steal fast legs as he performed in the minor league. His OPS is only 0.661.

The media said, "Excessive media and fans' interest in the 20-year-old rookie dampened Churio in this spring camp," adding, "There is enough time to confirm his true value through the regular season."

Meanwhile, his team Milwaukee will open the regular season with three consecutive away games against the New York Mets on the 29th of this month.