KBO sets a new target of 6 million fans for 2011 season

The new baseball season began with good momentum over the weekend with completely full stadiums in its opening games. The Korea Baseball Organization drew a record 5.92 million spectators last season, and this year, marking the 30th anniversary of the league’s launch, it has set a new target of 6 million fans. The start was good. In Jamsil, where the Doosan Bears squared off with their Seoul rival

April 5, 2011

Dreams of October

KBO champions SK Wyverns to face strong challenge in their bid to repeatThe SK Wyverns, which have won three of the past four championships in South Korean baseball, are once again considered a strong favorite. Led by the disciplinarian of a manager, Kim Sung-keun, they are a team built on pitching, defense and just enough hitting to put runs on the board. Though they haven’t made much improvement

March 29, 2011

Witness: Bonds blamed injury on steroids

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ― Barry Bonds’ former mistress testified Monday that he blamed a 1999 elbow injury on steroid use, and that the body and behavior of baseball’s home run king changed during their nine-year relationship.Called by prosecutors to the witness stand, Kimberly Bell choked up as she recalled Bonds once threatening “to cut my head off and leave me in a ditch,” an outburst prosecutors at

March 29, 2011

S. Korea's professional baseball starts its 30th season this weekend

(The Herald Biz)Baseball, South Korea's most popular professional sport, will launch its 30th season this weekend, with all eight clubs in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) in action across the nation.The 2011 KBO season starts Saturday with four games starting at 2 p.m. in four cities. The defending champion SK Wyverns will open at home against the Nexen Heroes in Incheon, west of Seoul. The

March 29, 2011

Homer-happy Royals blast past Mariners 9-8

PEORIA, Arizona (AP) ― Melky Cabrera, Alex Gordon and Lance Zawadzki each hit two-run homers and the Kansas City Royals broke a four-game spring training losing streak with a 9-8 win over the Seattle Mariners on Thursday.The Royals trailed 4-0 before scoring nine straight runs, including five in the sixth. Pedro Feliz added a pair of RBI doubles and Bruce Chen gave up four runs on five hits in six

March 25, 2011

Park struggles to adapt

It must have been a touchy week for Park Chan-ho, who is preparing for his debut season in the top Japanese baseball league. The veteran pitcher seems out of form, struggling to adapt to his new circumstances. The former major leaguer now plays in Japan after signing a one-year deal with the Orix Buffaloes of the Japanese Pacific League. Park is among the most highly paid players on the team, and

March 14, 2011

Choo deals with elbow soreness

GOODYEAR, Arizona (AP) ― Choo Shin-soo’s elbow is a little sore. Suddenly, the Cleveland Indians have another concern in their outfield.The club’s star right fielder was kept out of Cleveland’s starting lineup for the spring training opener against Cincinnati on Sunday to rest his left elbow, which flared up in recent days. Choo had Tommy John ligament-replacement surgery on the same elbow in 2007

Feb. 28, 2011

Career revival

Kim Byung-hyun looks to regain pitching prowess in JapanAfter toiling in a baseball netherworld for almost three years, Kim Byung-hyun, a former Major League Baseball All-Star from South Korea, is trying to get back on his feet in Japan.Kim, 32, signed with the Rakuten Golden Eagles in the Nippon Professional Baseball last month, and as the team was preparing for the upcoming season here in Okinaw

Feb. 23, 2011

Yoon highlights Korea’s role in G20 accord

The Korean delegation played a key role in Paris hammering out the Group of 20’s agreement on economic indicators to address the global trade imbalance, Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun said.Finance ministers and central bank governors of the world’s 20 major economies agreed to narrow the list of economic indicators to detect signs of imbalances in their first meeting of the year over the weekend

Feb. 21, 2011

Online game company tabbed as owner of new baseball team

A South Korean online game company has been tabbed as the owner of a new local professional baseball team.The Korea Baseball Organization on Tuesday gave the green light to NCsoft Corps., the game developer, to begin work on founding the ninth club in the top-division baseball league in South Korea. The expansion team will be based in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, about 400 kilometers south

Feb. 8, 2011

Park Chan-ho eyes success in Japan

Former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Park Chan-ho said he has plenty to learn as he prepares to relaunch his career at Japan’s Orix Buffaloes.“It is a big adventure to play baseball in Japan and it is a big chance as well. I’m very excited,” the 37-year-old South Korean veteran told a news conference in Osaka. “After I played against Japan at the World Baseball Classic, I have become increasingly in

Jan. 31, 2011

Kim Byung-hyun joins Japan’s Rakuten

South Korean pitcher Kim Byung-hyun has signed with the Rakuten Golden Eagles in the top-flight Japanese professional baseball league, ending winter-long speculation about his playing future.The Nippon Professional Baseball club announced late Wednesday that Kim, a former Major League Baseball All-Star, has inked a one-year deal worth $400,690. The right-hander with a submarine delivery will compe

Jan. 26, 2011

S. Korean major leaguer Choo Shin-soo gets a huge raise

Coming off the best season of his career, South Korean Major League Baseball player Choo Shin-soo received a huge raise for the upcoming season.   The Cleveland Indians outfielder reached a one-year deal worth US$3.975 million Wednesday, Korean time. The left-handed Choo put up the best numbers of his six-year major league career in 2010 while making $461,100, slightly above the major league minim

Jan. 19, 2011