“It’s always been a burden and difficult”…silent Mixzone after ‘Kookmin’s first home run’
“Huh…isn’t that right, I had a lot of bad showings at the convention…”
A heavy silence fell over the field. The next superstar to take charge of the KBO league, the man who had been the center of attention since high school.
However, after entering the professional ranks, he encountered twists and turns. Lee Jung-hoo, who dreamed of playing in the major leagues with his teammates, is facing a major injury and the prospect of challenging for the United States next year, but his position in the team is unstable amidst repeated regression. What can I say about the emotional struggles he went through through the Tokyo Olympics and the WBC (World Baseball Classic)?
It took Baek-ho Kang (KT Wiz) a few seconds to get his emotions under control.
Kang had three hits, including a solo shot, in South Korea’s 8-1 win over China in the Super Round of the Hangzhou Asian Games on Saturday. He singled earlier in the at-bat and came home on Kim Joo-won’s home run, and he also drew a walk to give him four RBIs on the day.
The loss to Chinese Taipei on Feb. 2 was good medicine for the South Korean team. After regrouping in the rain, the Koreans went on to defeat Thailand, Japan, and China to reach the final. They’ve made it through the thorns, and they’ve made it through the water. Now all they had to do was win the final game, a rematch with the nightmare Chinese Taipei.
“I was out of shape,” said Kang Baek-ho, “but my players played really well. They took the pressure off me. I’m really grateful,” he said. He added, “I will show my best for the national team in the remaining games.”
Earlier in the day, she had been hitting good shots only to be caught by the wicketkeeper. On this day, some balls went over the fence, while others were lucky to get a hit. “I was disappointed with my last few games, but I think I did better today,” said Kang. My first at-bat was a good hit, and my second at-bat was also good. I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s game.”
Kang Baek-ho is a national team veteran who has already earned his fourth cap since the 2019 Premier12.
“In international tournaments, I think it’s always more about the mood of the day and the responsibility of our players than their physical condition. Today, I think my first at-bat went well and led to a good result,” he said.
“Taiwan has a lot of good pitchers. But (unlike the last game), I think our players’ game sense has improved a lot, so I think we can take advantage of them. Tomorrow will probably be a tighter game, but in the end, like today, it’s all about getting an early lead. If we score first, I think our pitchers will be able to keep them in check. I’ll just try to stay focused (as a hitter).”
Kang Baek-ho was interrupted by a question about how he hasn’t been able to fulfill fans’ expectations at international tournaments. He was uncharacteristically unable to continue.
After a moment, he sighed and said, “I’ve shown a lot of bad performances in international competitions, so I’m always under pressure. For this tournament, I tried to work harder and concentrate more as they are really expecting it, so it was very difficult for me,” he said, adding, “We have one really important match tomorrow. Whether we do well or not, we will try to show that all players are responsible and do their best 굿모닝토토.”
The home run was the first of Kang’s career in the Premier 12, Tokyo Olympics, and WBC. Prior to the Asian Games, Kang had been struggling with a 2-for-14 batting average, but his last three tournaments have been consistent, with 17 hits in 47 at-bats (3-for-6, 2-runs) and nine RBIs in 16 games. However, a home run is a first.
“It’s good to hit a home run. But today was an important game, and tomorrow is even more important. I’m satisfied that I’m in good shape for such a game,” he said, emphasizing that he’s happy that he had an impact on Korea’s victory rather than my first home run.
“The team atmosphere is really good right now. I will do my best for tomorrow’s game. I will play with no regrets.”