Links to some articles about Korean baseball

For those of you new to Korean baseball and the KBO, or those of you who have been following it, but are interested in some historical information about it, below is a list of links to articles that I wrote a few years back, between 2014-2016. I just thought I'd collect all the links here in one place. I hope you find the articles interesting and entertaining.

Historical Articles:

Baseball in Korea goes back further than you might think
This article looks at the earliest references to baseball being played in Korea.

Why Koreans call baseball 'yagu'
This article looks at some of the early Korean words for 'baseball' and offers a possible explanation of why baseball is called 'yagu' in Korean.

St. Louis Cardinals played in Korea in 1958
An article about when the St. Loius Cardinals played a baseball game in Korea in 1958.

When Hank Aaron came to Korea
An article about the two trips Hank Aaron made to Korea in 1982, including the Atlanta Braves minor league goodwill tour with Ernie Banks and Billy Williams.

When 'mercenaries' first invaded the KBO
An article about the first group of foreigner players in the KBO in 1998.

Lee Seung-yuop all-time best hitter
This article is a recap of the 2015 Spring Conference for the Society of Korean Baseball Studies (SKB). The article focuses on a panel discussion with former KBO greats on the topic of the all-time best hitter in KBO history.

Interviews:

Eric Thames of NC Dinos, a hit on and off field
A feature piece on MLB player and past KBO star of the NC Dinos and his life in Korea.

Oh Seung-hwan, 'Final Boss,' seeks new opponents in MLB
An interview with Korean pitcher Oh Seung-hwan of the Samsung Lions about his career and pitching in Japan.

Lee Dae-ho has right attitude for MLB success
Interview with Lee Dae-ho of the Lotte Giants about his experiences playing baseball in Japan.

Bridging the Gap
An interview with Ryan Sadowski, ex-MLB and KBO pitcher and current international scout for the Kia Tigers. The interview is related to cultural adjustments players need to make when playing in a foreign baseball league.

Baseball fans help grieving American
A couple of Korean baseball fans and a KBO player reach out to an American in Arizona to help him deal with the loss of his brother.

Profitable 2nd league team? Goyang Dinos think it's possible
A look at some of the business ideas of a minor league (Futures League) team, Goyang Dinos, in Korea.

As always, if anyone has any questions or comments, feel free to ask on twitter or in the comments section.

KBO Players From Around the World

Teams in the KBO are allowed to have three non-Korean players (aka foreign players) on their roster. This number has been different in the past, but currently it is three per team. Teams have to have a mix of position players and pitchers, for example two pitchers and one hitter or two hitters and one pitcher. Foreign players have been playing in the KBO since 1998. I wrote an article about the first year of foreign players titled When 'mercenaries' first invaded the KBO.

I have left off players from the United States, as that is where most of the players in 1998 came from. If you are interested in seeing the rest of the players from 1998, you can check out the link to the above mentioned article or look at this old post.

Below is a list of players who were the first from their country to play in the KBO:

1998 – Eddie Cacerres (에드가 캐세레스) / IF (내야수) / Venezuela (베네수엘라) / OB Bears

1998 – Joel Chimelis (조엘 치멜리스) / IF (내야수) / Venezuela (베네수엘라) / Hanwha Eagles

1998 – Jose Parra (호세 파라) / Pitcher (투수) / Dominican Republic (도미니카 공화국) / Samsung Lions

1998 – Junior Felix (쥬니어 펠릭스 / 후니오르 펠릭스)  / OF (외야수) / Dominican Republic (도미니카 공화국) / LG Twins

2000 – Hensley Meulens (헨슬리 뮬렌 ) / OF (외야수) / Curaçao (퀴라소) / SK Wyverns

2001 – Shayne Bennett (셰인 베넷)  / Pitcher (투수) / Australia (오스트레일리아) / Doosan Bears

2001 – Carlos Baerga (카를로스 비에르가) / (2B) IF (내야수) / Puerto Rico (푸에르토리코) / Samsung Lions

2002 – Lenin Picota (레닌 피코타) / RHP (투수) / Panama (파나마 공화국) / Hanwha Eagles

2002 – Narciso Elvira (나르시소 엘비라) / Pitcher (투수) / Mexico (멕시코) / Samsung Lions

2003 – Satoshi Iriki (이리키 사토시) / Pitcher (투수) / Japan (일본) / Doosan Bears

2003 – Mike Johnson (마이크 존슨) / RHP (투수) / Canada (캐나다) / Kia Tigers

2010 – Francisley Bueno (프랜시슬리 부에노) / LHP (투수) / Cuba / (쿠바) / Hanwha Eagles

2013 – Rick VandenHurk (릭 반덴허크) / Pitcher (투수) / the Netherlands (네덜란드) / Samsung Lions

2016 – Sugar Ray Marimon (슈가 레이 마리몽) / RHP (투수) / Columbia (콜롬비아) / KT Wiz

2016 – Alex Maestri (알렉스 마에스트리) / RHP (투수) / Italy (이탈리아) / Hanwha Eagles

2018 – Wei Chung Wang (왕웨이중) / LHP (투수) / Taiwan (대만) / NC Dinos

Korean Baseball Resources Revisited

Years ago I published a post on resources for the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) in English. Since then, much of the information has changed, so I'm posting this as an updated version. This page is meant to be a resource for people who are looking for Korean baseball information in English. Most of the links in this post are related to the KBO and contemporary baseball in Korea.  I will regularly update this post when I find new information and will try to make sure all the links are current.

English website for KBO Teams
In the past, some teams had websites in English, but after checking all the teams' sites, I don't believe any teams have them anymore.

Sites
Official KBO English Site
KBO's official English website

MyKBO
The most extensive and up-to-date site for information and news about Korean baseball.

Japanese Baseball
Despite it being a Japanese baseball site, the link above will take you to the KBO News Forum on the site. It's a great site with many very knowledgeable participants about baseball in general and especially baseball in Asia.

True Stories of Korean Baseball - Last updated 2014
A blog with game highlights, information and news about the KBO that started in 2009. I have been told that there will be no new posts, however, there is still a great amount of information on it to be discovered.

Bang the Jang-gu Slowly - Last updated in 2013
A personal blog by baseball fan 'Angry' Steve about the Lotte Giants and Korean baseball.

The Baseball Journeyman - KBO section last updated April 2012
Information about baseball in South Korea, especially good posts on the various stadiums and interviews with people about Korean baseball.

The Baseball Guru
This has some basic information about Korean baseball, but has not been updated in some time though.

Korean Baseball Blog - Has not been updated recently.
Only a total of 17 posts

Baseball Reference
Baseball Reference's page about the KBO.

You can find articles written about the current season in the sports section of the two largest Korean English newspapers and some other Korean news outlets:
The Korea Times
Korea Herald
Yonhap News

On Twitter
Mainly KBO
@kballhistory
@MyKBO
@BaseballinKorea
@Jeeho_1
@KoreaSABR


On Wikipedia
Current KBO Team Rosters - Current team rosters of KBO teams
Baseball Stadiums - A list of the baseball stadiums in South Korea
Korea Baseball Organization - Governing body for pro baseball leagues in Korea
Korea Baseball Championship - Also know as 프로야구, the highest level pro baseball league in Korea
Korea Baseball Futures League - Korean minor league
Korea Baseball Association - Governing body for amateur baseball in Korea

On Facebook
KBO in English
SABR Korea Chapter
MyKBO


Books
Taking in a Game: The History of Baseball in Asia by Joseph A. Reaves
Baseball without Borders: The International Pastime

Once again, if you know of any information that is missing, please leave a comment or feel free to contact me and I will work on getting it up. I been away from posting about Korean baseball for about five years, so sorry if I've missed some things.

From Around the Web November

With the baseball season over in Korea there has still been a lot of news.  In case you missed some of the KBO playoffs, I've included a wrap-up article for each round.  Samsung failed to win their second Asia Series title, but had a couple big wins.  The KT Wiz unveiled their new uniforms, logos and what immediately became notorious mascots.  The KBO hot stove is also already over, with some big name players changing teams.  Hope this post catches you up on your Korean baseball news.


KBO Playoffs articles

Doosan eliminates Nexen in KBO playoff with dramatic extra-inning victory

Doosan beats LG to reach KBO championship final

Lions Celebrate Historic Series

Asia Series

Samsung Lions defeat Fortitudo Bologna

Samsung Lions defeat Taiwanese rival

Canberra Cavalry earn historic spot in Asia Series final

New SABR Korea Chapter

SABR welcomes new international chapter in South Korea

Awards: MVP & ROY

Nexen slugger Park, Byung-ho earns 2nd straight MVP in KBO

Hot Stove news

Sixteen players declare free agency in KBO

Four KBO free agents sign huge deals

KBO teams are paying too much for redemption

Yoon, Suk-min news

Does Suk-min Yoon make sense for the Cubs?

Minnesota Twins are eyeing Korean pitcher Suk-Min Yoon

Lukewarm Stove: Cubs an early favorite for Korean righty Suk-min Yoon

Ex-Yankee Breaks Down Suk-min Yoon

Oh, Seung-hwan signing

Hanshin Tigers Announce Additions of Seung-hwan Oh, Mauro Gomez

2013 KBO Player WAR Leader board

Pitchers

Position Players

Ex-KBOers News:

Bronswell Patrick Interview (Part 1)

Random Articles:

Where have all the .400 gone?

Heroes slugger scares pitchers

As always, questions and comments are always welcome.

Foreign Players in the KBO 2000

A new millennium and a new KBO season, and since 1998, a new crop of foreign players.  As with the previous seasons, you will notice some familiar faces, including the best foreign player, thus far, in the KBO, Doosan's Tyrone Woods.  The 2000 season would bring the most famous ex-MLBer the KBO had seen in three-time all-star Julio Franco.  This year would also bring the first time a foreign player changed teams in-season.  The less renown of the Mitchell brothers, Kevin's brother Keith, would also make an appearance in the league, playing a little over half a season here.

2000 saw a few other changes to league as well.  The financially troubled Ssangbangwool Raiders of North Jeolla Province folded and were replaced by a new franchise, the SK Wyverns.  While these teams are not officially connected, many Raiders players went on to play for SK.  The new Wyvers team made its home in Incheon, where they replaced the recently departed Hyundai Unicorns, who had just moved to Suwon.

2000 Season

Doosan Bears / 두산 베어스

Tyrone Woods (타이론 우즈) / 1B (내야수) / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.315	127	479	151	22	0	39	77	4	111

Mike Farmer (마이크 파머)  / Pitcher (투수) / American (미국)

Year	G	W-L-S	Innings	Batters	Hits	HR	Walks	SO	ER	ERA
2000	27	10-9-0	152.2	689	158	11	85	92	77	4.54

LG Twins / LG 트윈스

*Bubba Smith (찰스 스미스) / OF (외야수) / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.314	42	153	48	8	0	15	20	0	43

Brent Cookson (브렌트 쿡슨) / OF (외야수) / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.222	20	81	18	2	1	6	5	1	20

Denny Harriger (데니 해리거) / Pitcher (투수) / American (미국)

Year	G	W-L-S	Innings	Batters	Hits	HR	Walks	SO	ER	ERA
2000	31	17-10-0	225	905	192	10	61	162	78	3.12

Jim Tatum (짐 테이템) / IF (내야수) / 3B / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.292	20	72	21	4	1	4	10	0	10

Haitai Tigers / 해태 타이거즈

Jayson Bass (제이슨 배스)  / OF (외야수) / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.271	15	59	16	4	0	3	9	3	13

Keith Mitchell (키스 미첼) / OF (외야수) / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.227	77	238	54	8	0	8	38	3	38

Arquimedez Pozo (아르키메데스 포조)  / IF (내야수) / Dominican Republic (도미니카 공화국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.213	39	122	26	3	0	1	6	1	8

Jesus Tavarez (헤수스 타바레스)  / OF (외야수) / Dominican Republic (도미니카 공화국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.334	74	305	102	15	2	3	21	31	44

Jose Francisco Malave (didn’t play)

Hanwha Eagles / 한화 이글스

Jay Davis (제이 데이비스) / OF (외야수) / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.334	107	419	140	29	1	22	25	21	80

Dan Rohrmeier (댄 로마이어) / IF (내야수) / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.296	123	473	140	30	0	29	53	3	96

Lotte Giants / 롯데 자이언츠

Emiliano Giron (에밀리아노 기론) / Pitcher (투수) / Dominican Republic (도미니카 공화국)

Year	G	W-L-S	Innings	Batters	Hits	HR	Walks	SO	ER	ERA
2000	31	10-8-0	169	757	183	21	85	134	94	5.01

Derrick White (데릭 화이트) / OF (외야수) / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.303	74	294	89	17	1	11	25	4	53

Ted Wood (테드 우드) / OF (외야수) / Dominican Republic (도미니카 공화국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.255	35	110	28	9	0	1	11	1	9

Samsung Lions / 삼성 라이온즈

*Bubba Smith (찰스 스미스) / OF (외야수) &  IF (내야수)  / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.274	76	270	74	19	1	20	33	0	57

Julio Franco (훌리오 프랑코) / OF (외야수) / Dominican Republic (도미니카 공화국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.327	132	477	156	19	1	22	63	12	110

Michael Garcia (마이클 가르시아) / Pitcher / (투수) American (미국)

Year	G	W-L-S	Innings	Batters	Hits	HR	Walks	SO	ER	ERA
2000	13	2-5-0	55.2	237	46	2	20	34	18	2.91

Hyundai Unicorns / 현대 유니콘스

Charles Carpenter (찰스 카펜터)  / OF (외야수)  / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.282	39	142	40	7	0	5	13	5	32

Darryl Brinkley (대릴 브링클리) / OF (외야수)  / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.209	27	91	19	1	0	3	6	2	14

Eddie Williams (에디 윌리엄스) / IF (내야수) / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.248	37	133	33	7	0	12	25	0	26

Tom Quinlan (톰 퀸란) / IF (내야수) / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.236	133	487	115	23	2	37	36	2	91

SK Wyverns / SK 와이번스

Victor Cole (빅터 콜) / Pitcher (투수) / American (미국)

Year	G	W-L-S	Innings	Batters	Hits	HR	Walks	SO	ER	ERA
2000	37	8-10-2	114.1	533	116	12	78	71	78	6.14

Hensley Meulens (헨슬리 뮬렌 ) / OF (외야수) / Curaçao (퀴라소)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.196	14	46	9	0	0	1	6	2	3

Harvey Pulliam (하비 풀리엄) / OF (외야수) / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.267	91	288	77	13	1	16	27	2	55

Tyrone Horne (타이론 혼즈) / OF (외야수) / American (미국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.317	23	82	26	6	1	1	7	0	10

Tilson Brito (틸슨 브리또 or 브리토) / IF (내야수) / Dominican Republic (도미니카 공화국)

Year	Avg.	G	AB	Hits	2B	3B	HR	Walks	SB	RBI
2000	.338	103	405	137	26	4	15	11	3	70

*Bubba Smith moved from Samsung to LG during the season. 

Any questions or comments are always welcome.