KBO's top club looking to extend lead in midweek series vs. No. 2 team

The two best clubs in South Korean baseball so far this season will square off this week, with the first-place NC Dinos looking to put some distance between themselves and the second-seed Kiwoom Heroes. The Dinos will wrap up their six-game Seoul road trip with a three-game set against the Heroes at Gocheok Sky Dome, beginning Tuesday. The Dinos lead the season series 4-2. Prior to Monday's slate, the Dinos had the best record in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) at 39-17-1 (wins-losses-t

July 13, 2020

Kiwoom Heroes take rubber match vs. Samsung Lions in KBO midweek series

The Kiwoom Heroes staged their second come-from-behind victory over the Samsung Lions on Thursday, prevailing 4-2 in the rubber match of their three-game midweek series at home. The Heroes took care of business with a three-run fifth at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, as they improved to 35-22 for the season. The Lions fell to 30-27. Kiwoom starter Eric Jokisch is now 8-2 after scattering eight hits -- tied for his season high -- across seven innings and allowing two earned runs. He has now thrown

July 9, 2020

KBO's batting average leader to miss 3 weeks with leg injuries

The batting average leader in South Korean baseball has been ruled out for up to three weeks with injuries to both legs. The Kia Tigers said their second baseman Kim Sun-bin will miss time with a bruised right ankle and strained left quad. He will be re-evaluated after a couple of weeks, the Tigers added. Kim is leading the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) with a .378 average. He won the batting title in 2017 by hitting .370. Kim suffered the injuries on Sunday, after tripping up over the l

July 6, 2020

Kiwoom Heroes' Park Byung-ho hits 300th career KBO home run

Kiwoom Heroes' slugger Park Byung-ho blasted his 300th career home run in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) on Sunday. Park became the 14th player, and fifth active hitter, to reach that milestone with a two-run home run off KT Wiz starter Kim Min-su in the top of the fifth inning at KT Wiz Park in Suwon, 45 kilometers south of Seoul. Park turned on a 2-2 curveball and sent it over the center field wall, cutting the deficit to 7-3. It wasn't nearly enough, as the Heroes ended up losing 10

July 5, 2020

Football league targeting July 10 for return of fans

The South Korean football league is hoping to have fans back in the stands by July 10 at the earliest, a league official said Tuesday. The Korea Professional Football League (K League) said the match between Busan IPark and FC Seoul in the top-flight K League 1 will likely be the first contest of the season played before fans. It will kick off at 7:30 p.m. at Busan Gudeok Stadium in Busan, 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul. Football and baseball are the two major professional sports being pl

June 30, 2020

KBO considering QR code registration for fans when stadiums reopen during pandemic

As it prepares to reopen ballparks to fans during the coronavirus pandemic, the South Korean baseball league is contemplating installing an electronic entry registration system at stadiums based on quick response (QR) code. Ryu Dae-hwan, secretary general of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), told Yonhap News Agency Tuesday that QR code is being considered as part of the league's measures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus and to expedite contact tracing in case of positive tes

June 30, 2020

Baseball fans required to sit apart, no outside food permitted when stadiums open

When fans return to baseball stadiums sometime in July, they will be asked to sit apart from one another to maintain a safe distance. And they'll not be allowed to bring in any outside food. This will be part of a new normal in fan experience in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) during the coronavirus pandemic. The KBO released a new health and safety manual for fans Tuesday, as it prepares to swing open gates to baseball enthusiasts. The 2020 season opened on May 5 without fans in the s

June 30, 2020

KBO player banned indefinitely by club over alleged sexual harassment of minor

A South Korean baseball player was suspended indefinitely by his team on Friday over allegations that he sexually harassed a minor. The Lotte Giants of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) said catcher Ji Seong-jun has been removed from the team's roster and they have reported the case to the league office. Ji, who has bounced between the KBO and its minor league, Futures League, in 2020, will remain suspended until the KBO determines its potential discipline against him. The accuser claimed

June 26, 2020

KBO club manager falls unconscious during game, regains consciousness inside ambulance

INCHEON -- A South Korean baseball club manager fell unconscious in the middle of a game Thursday and was taken away in an ambulance. Youm Kyoung-youb, manager for the SK Wvyerns in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), collapsed in his dugout at SK Happy Dream Park in Incheon, some 40 kilometers west of Seoul, after the top of the second inning against the Doosan Bears. The 52-year-old was immediately transported to a local hospital. The Wyverns later said Youm regained consciousness inside

June 25, 2020

S. Korean Ryu Hyun-jin not among multiple Blue Jays to test positive for COVID-19: source

South Korean pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin isn't among multiple members of the Toronto Blue Jays who have reportedly tested positive for the novel coronavirus, a source close to the player said Thursday. The source said Ryu has been tested twice for COVID-19, and both results came back negative. "He's training without any trouble," the source told Yonhap News Agency. "Though he doesn't know where the season will start, he's trying to stay positive." After months of delay caused by

June 25, 2020

Rays' infielder Choi Ji-man leaves for US to rejoin club

Tampa Bay Rays' South Korean first baseman Choi Ji-man, who has been training in his home country since April, left for the United States Tuesday to rejoin his club. A source close to Choi said Tuesday the player will continue to work out on his own until there's more clarity regarding the start of the 2020 Major League Baseball (MLB) season. When the coronavirus pandemic put the start of the season on indefinite hold, Choi came home on March 24. Following a two-week quarantine, Choi started

June 23, 2020

Ex-MLB player Kang Jung-ho apologizes over DUI cases, begs for chance to play in KBO

Contrite over his past drunk driving arrests, former major leaguer Kang Jung-ho apologized for his actions Tuesday in his bid for a return to the South Korean league. "I know that no word can ever wash away the things I did, and I deeply regret my wrongdoing," Kang said at the start of a press conference at a Seoul hotel. It was his first public appearance since returning from the United States on June 5. He spent the next 14 days in government-mandated quarantine amid the coronaviru

June 23, 2020

Reticent KBO manager expresses rare excitement over healthy lineup

On his way to ballpark on Thursday, Lotte Giants' manager Her Mun-hoe walked with an extra spring in his step, knowing that he'd have a fully, healthy lineup for the first time in a month. Second baseman An Chi-hong will return Thursday against the Kiwoom Heroes at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, after missing the past three days with a left hamstring injury. Versatile utility man Jung Hoon came back to the lineup Wednesday after being sidelined for over a month with an oblique injury. Jung went 2-

June 18, 2020

KBO's two worst teams make 1-for-1 trade

The two worst teams in South Korean baseball made a trade on Thursday. The last-place Hanwha Eagles dealt reliever Lee Tae-yang to the No. 9 club SK Wyverns in exchange for outfielder Ro Soo-kwang, the two Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) clubs announced. Lee, 29, is a right-hander who has started and pitched out of the bullpen in eight KBO seasons. In seven relief appearances this season, Lee has a 7.27 ERA without a win-loss record. Lee enjoyed his best season in 2018, when he went 4-2 wi

June 18, 2020

Lotte Giants hold off Kiwoom Heroes to open KBO midweek series

Dixon Machado had three hits, including a key RBI single in the eighth, as the Lotte Giants got past the Kiwoom Heroes 7-5 to open their Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) midweek series on the road on Tuesday. Machado, a shortstop getting a breather from the field as the designated hitter in this game, enjoyed his second three-hit game in six days, and has now hit safely in seven of his past eight games. Lotte starter Noh Kyung-eun improved to 3-2 after holding the Heroes to three runs on thr

June 16, 2020

Seeking KBO return, embattled ex-MLB player Kang Jung-ho to hold presser next Tuesday

Former major league player Kang Jung-ho, hoping for a return to the South Korean league despite a checkered past marred by multiple drunk driving arrests, will meet with the media next week, his agency said Tuesday. Leeco Sports Agency said Kang will hold a press conference at a Seoul hotel next Tuesday for his first public appearance since returning from the United States on June 5. Per the government mandate on all international arrivals during the coronavirus pandemic, Kang remains in a tw

June 16, 2020

More relaxed and confident, NC Dinos' Aaron Altherr emerges from slump as lethal force in bottom of lineup

What's your image of a baseball hitter near the bottom of a lineup? Maybe it's a light-hitting, defense-first catcher. Or it's a light-hitting, speed-first, defense-second middle infielder. Or it could be an aging corner outfielder holding down that spot just because someone has to. The NC Dinos, the best team in South Korean baseball so far this year, have the luxury of employing a strapping center fielder in the lower third of their batting order, a former major leaguer with a swing so compa

June 16, 2020

Baseball player set to take another crack at pitching

All he wants to do is to pitch again. Kang Ji-kwang of the SK Wyverns will take his second crack at pitching in the pros, his Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) club announced Monday. His season debut on the mound will come in the Futures League, the KBO's minor league, as early as Tuesday, the Wyverns added. The 29-year-old was a hard-throwing high school pitcher who converted to an infielder after getting drafted by the LG Twins in 2009. He made his KBO debut with the Nexen (currently Kiwoom

June 15, 2020

With veterans set to return, Hanwha Eagles looking to take off in KBO

Funny how baseball works sometimes. As of Sunday morning, the Hanwha Eagles were mired in an 18-game losing streak, tied for longest in the history of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), which began in 1982. By the evening, though, the Eagles emerged with two straight victories, the longest active winning streak in the league. The Eagles ended the slide with a 7-6 victory over the Doosan Bears at home in Daejeon, 160 kilometers south of Seoul. It was a continuation of a game suspended by r

June 15, 2020

KBO's Hanwha Eagles snap record-tying losing streak at 18

DAEJEON -- Start spreading the news: the Hanwha Eagles have finally won a game. The Eagles snapped their Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) record-tying losing skid at 18 games on Sunday with a 7-6 walk-off victory over the Doosan Bears at home in Daejeon, 160 kilometers south of Seoul. Noh Tae-hyoung delivered the game-winning single with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, giving the Eagles their first victory since May 22. The Eagles and the Bears picked up this game from the bottom of th

June 14, 2020