Baseball fans Fans cheer on their team, alongside a lively performance by cheerleaders, at a Korea Baseball Organization league match between the Lotte Giants and NC Dinos at the Sajik Baseball Stadium in Busan, 453 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on July 28, 2020. (Yonhap)
So who would be excited to watch some South Korean baseball games on ESPN?:
A Korea Baseball Organization preseason game between the Doosan Bears and the Kiwoom Heroes takes place at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on April 22, 2020. (Yonhap)
U.S. sports media giant ESPN was seeking free rights to broadcast South Korean professional baseball games, leading to a stalemate in its negotiations with its counterpart in Seoul, informed sources told Yonhap News Agency on Thursday.
According to sources with knowledge of the talks, ESPN wanted to acquire rights to Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) games for free from Eclat, which owns international rights to KBO games.
You can read more at the link, but clearly ESPN is desperate and I don’t blame the KBO for playing hardball on them. If they want programming they should pay for it.
“I didn’t mean to do anything offensive." –#Gurriel. Yes, because we all know that doing this to an Asian is a universal sign of respect. pic.twitter.com/tfFO9ebyQU
This is an aerial view of the Hwaseong Dream Park, a youth baseball complex in Hwaseong, west of Seoul, that opened on June 9, 2017. The 242,000-square-meter complex, Asia’s biggest, houses eight ballparks, including four for players in elementary school and one for female players. (Yonhap)
It looks like former US Ambassador to Korea Mark Lippert is a really big fan of the Doosan Bears:
Mark Lippert (C), former U.S. ambassador to South Korea, waves to fans while attending a Korea Baseball Organization game between the Doosan Bears and the Hanwha Eagles at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on March 31, 2017. (Yonhap)
Former U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert returned to Seoul on Friday to attend a baseball game.
Lippert, whose term ended in January after a little over two years, attended the 2017 Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season opener between the home team Doosan Bears and the Hanwha Eagles at Jamsil Stadium.
A Bears official said Lippert had contacted the club about 10 days ago saying he wanted to be here for the first game of the new season.
During his time here, Lippert, an avid baseball fan, had been an honorary ambassador for the KBO. The Bears are his favorite team, and he often traveled across the nation to watch them in postseason play. [Yonhap]
It seems the US Embassy is punishing Kang Jung-ho more than the Korean justice system is willing to do after his third DUI conviction:
In this file photo taken on March 3, 2017, Pittsburgh Pirates infielder Kang Jung-ho arrives at the Seoul Central District Court to attend a verdict hearing on his DUI charges. (Yonhap)
Pittsburgh Pirates’ third baseman Kang Jung-ho has been denied a U.S. work visa following a recent DUI conviction, a source close to the matter told Yonhap News Agency Saturday, casting further doubt on his status for the 2017 major league season.
The source confirmed a report on Friday by the local network KBS that the U.S. Embassy in Seoul recently rejected Kang’s application for a visa to enter the country. The news came exactly three weeks after Kang received an eight-month sentence, which was suspended for two years, for leaving the scene of a DUI accident in Seoul last December. It was his third DUI arrest in South Korea and his driver’s license has been revoked. [Yonhap]
You can read more at the link, but if he is not allowed to enter the US to play, Kang would assuredly be on the hook to lose millions of dollars from his Major League Baseball contract.
I wonder how many arrests it takes to get jailed in South Korea for DUIs? Obviously three is not the number:
Pittsburgh Pirates infielder Kang Jung-ho arrives at the Seoul Central District Court on March 3, 2017, to attend a verdict hearing on his DUI charges. (Yonhap)
Pittsburgh Pirates’ third baseman Kang Jung-ho received a suspended sentence Friday for driving under the influence of alcohol.
The Seoul Central District Court sentenced Kang to eight months in prison, which is to be suspended for two years, for leaving the scene of a DUI accident in Seoul on Dec. 2.
Prosecutors had sought a summary order with a fine of 15 million won ($US13,000) on Kang. But the court determined Kang’s case was serious enough that it must be processed through a trial.
The ruling clears the path for Kang to travel to the United States and join the Pirates in spring training long underway. Kang has had to stay in Seoul for his trial on Feb. 22 and verdict hearing Friday. [Yonhap]
You would think with the millions of dollars this guy has made as a major leaguer he could at least afford his own driver or at least a taxi:
In this file photo taken on Dec. 6, 2016, Kang Jung-ho, South Korean infielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates, arrives at Gangnam Police Station in southern Seoul to face questioning over allegations he fled the scene after causing a traffic accident while driving under the influence of alcohol earlier in the month. (Yonhap)
Seoul police said Wednesday they’re seeking to indict Pittsburgh Pirates’ infielder Kang Jung-ho on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol.
Police have handed the case over to prosecutors after investigating Kang for leaving the scene of a DUI accident in the nation’s capital on Dec. 2.
It was Kang’s third DUI arrest, which resulted in revocation of his license.
Kang fled the scene after crashing into a guard rail on his way to his hotel in southern Seoul. In the immediate aftermath, a friend of Kang’s in the passenger seat, only identified by the surname Yoo, reported to police as the driver of the vehicle. Police analyzed the black box inside the vehicle and determined that Kang had actually been behind the wheel.
Police are also seeking indictment of Kang’s friend. They said they couldn’t clearly establish that the two had intentionally misled police or that Kang had specifically asked Yoo to offer false testimony at first.
Kang, who has two major leaguer seasons under his belt, also faced sexual assault allegations that emerged in Chicago in July.
He was named to the South Korean national team for the 2017 World Baseball Classic (WBC) scheduled for March, but will likely be dropped from the 28-man roster as early as Wednesday. [Yonhap]
It looks like this guy may be too self destructive to remain a major league baseball player considering he only hit .255 last year with 21 home runs.
Gocheok Sky Dome is the city’s newest indoor baseball stadium. The stadium, based in western Seoul, has a capacity of 16,000 and is home to the Nexen Heroes baseball team. The dome officially opened in 2015 and is the country’s first stadium of its kind containing transparent soundproof panels keeping the noise from the game from disrupting the neighbors. The Gocheok Sky Dome is also used to host concerts and has a swimming pool as well as other sporting facilities at the site. With a fantastic, futuristic exterior and an almost guaranteed super atmosphere inside, Gocheok Sky Dome is certainly worth a visit! [Seoul Flickr Page]
Eric Thames, a former major league player and now a first baseman of South Korea’s NC Dinos, smiles after winning the MVP award of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) on Nov. 24, 2015. Thames, 29, helped the Dinos to their second straight postseason and became the third foreign player to win the KBO’s top individual honor. (Yonhap)
