Who knew that baseball is so popular in Korea? Not me. Not that I am an expert on sports abroad (or at home for that matter). I spent my Saturday afternoon at the season opener of the Doosan Bears v. Kia Tigers.
Apparently, South Korea has 8 major league baseball teams. They are all sponsored by large companies so their names all begin with a company name. Seoul has two major league teams: the Doosan Bears and the LG Twins. They both play at the baseball field that was used and built for the 1988 Olympics. The Olympic Stadium sits right behind the baseball stadium. Here's a picture for your viewing pleasure.
We travelled down to the Sports Complex and stood in line for our tickets. Tickets ranged from 3,000-20,000 won (like $2.00-$15.00). As we were standing in line for our tickets, a TV station recorded us. Not too bad for a professional league game. In America we have stands that sell soda, peanuts, and hotdogs. Not in Korea, you can get whole dried squid, kimbap (Korean sushi), beer, soju (Korea's favorite liquor), hard boiled eggs, and fish pancake things. Amazing! You can take all of this into the stadium. Here's a picture of one of the vendors with her goods she is selling.
The South Korean Military performed some pre-game entertainment. It was really good. There was also some traditional Korean dancers that we missed and of course cheerleaders. Wait a second, I guess in America baseball does not have cheerleaders.
The players are a good range of ages. The youngest was only 18 while the oldest was 38. The Doosan Bears even had a "Waygook" (foreigner) playing for them. His name is Matt Watson from Philadelphia. They also don't have an obscure entrance to the building. They get off the bus and walk right along with the fans into the stadium. Quite a few of the home team players had "theme songs" that would play every time they were up to bat. One of the songs was set to the tune of "Mary Had a Little Lamb." I wish I knew what the words to it were.
Koreans really get into their baseball! They clap these long skinny tubes together in unison, sings songs, and really enjoy themselves. I was mesmerized by the whole scene. Fans are led in chants by a guy standing on top a platform in the seats. Each team has their own guy to lead them. The fans throw confetti onto the field when they see something they like and aren't quiet until after the pitch is caught by the catcher and even then it's not that quiet. When the bases were loaded they would chant something that sounded to me like "Need home run" but then again I don't speak Korean so I just make things up as I go along. Here's a video of the awesome fans.
One of the most amusing things is the "6th Inning Stretch." I know, in America it's the "7th Inning Stretch" but come on they had to spice it up a bit. This 6th Innining Stretch is for the players not the fans. The players literally go on to the field for a bit and stretch and roll around like baseball players do when they warm up.
I was rooting for the Kia Tigers for no other reason than they had red uniforms and their fans seemed more into the game. They were behind 1-6 until 7th inning when they rallied and scored 4 runs to bring the game within one. Sadly, Doosan got two runs in the 8th and sealed the deal for a final score of 5-7 in favor of Doosan. I was a bit sad but I will definitely be back for another Korean Baseball experience. At that at a cheap price, how could you pass it up?
the ball park or olympic park looks like invesco feild !! Sounds like a fun time at base ball!
ReplyDeleteTom
Christine, our family would love Korean baseball, especially Daniel and Monica! Thanks for an entertaining blog. Glad to hear you are doing well.
ReplyDeleteMike S.