Trying to regain consistency with his best pitch, the changeup, Toronto Blue Jays' Ryu Hyun-jin put his head down and got to work in the bullpen during the All-Star break. And he came out throwing it as well as he has at any point this year. The South Korean left-hander rode the changeup to a seven-inning shutout of the Texas Rangers at Sahlen Field in Buffalo, New York, on Sunday (local time). Ryu held the opponents to three hits in the first game of a doubleheader for his first complete game

Baseball July 19, 2021

Second Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-moon will visit Washington this week for talks about implementing agreements reached at a summit between the two countries in May, the foreign ministry said Monday. During his trip there from Monday through Thursday, Choi plans to meet officials from the White House and the State Department, and key members of the House to follow up on the outcomes of the May 21 summit between Presidents Moon Jae-in and Joe Biden. During the summit in Washington, Moon and

Foreign Affairs July 19, 2021

Though it came in an abbreviated game, Ryu Hyun-jin will take a complete game shutout in any shape or form. The South Korean starter for the Toronto Blue Jays pitched a seven-inning shutout against the Texas Rangers to open the second half of the season at Sahlen Field in Buffalo, New York, on Sunday (local time), carrying Toronto to a 5-0 win in the first game of a doubleheader. Ryu gave up three hits and a walk while striking out four, after his scheduled start was pushed back by a day due to

Baseball July 19, 2021

The South Korean men's Olympic football team almost had a brush with the novel coronavirus over the weekend, even before the start of their competition in Japan. Ryu Seung-min, a South Korean member of the International Olympic Committee, was diagnosed with COVID-19 after arriving in Japan on Saturday. The football team had been scheduled to be on the same flight with Ryu but took a different, earlier flight instead following a last-minute change. Given the recent surge in new cases in and aro

Olympic Games July 18, 2021

SHENYANG, China -- North Korea's imports from China rose sharply to $12.3 million last month from $2.71 million a month earlier, Chinese trade data showed Sunday. The North's imports had fallen to $29,000 and $3,000 in January and February, respectively, before rising to $28.75 million in April and then falling again in May, according to the data. North Korea's exports to China posted $1.81 million in June, with bilateral trade volume coming to $14.13 million. The two countries' trade volume

North Korea July 18, 2021

South Korea will ban gatherings of more than four people in regions outside the greater Seoul area starting Monday to curb the nationwide spread of the coronavirus, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Sunday. Most regions outside the wider capital area have been placed under Level 2 measures, in which gatherings of more than eight people are banned. But the government decided to toughen the antivirus scheme, as the non-Seoul metropolitan regions have also seen a surge in new cases in recent days.

Social Affairs July 18, 2021

As roster decisions go, this was probably the easiest one to make for the South Korean Olympic baseball manager Kim Kyung-moon. During a press conference on Sunday at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, Kim named Oh Seung-hwan, he of more than 400 professional saves in three different leagues, as his closer for the Tokyo Olympics. The 39-year-old right-hander for the Samsung Lions is the career saves leader in Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) history with 322. He is leading the league this year with 2

Olympic Games July 18, 2021

During South Korea's inexorable march to the baseball gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the defining moment for catcher Kang Min-ho came not in an at-bat or a defensive play but in an ejection. With South Korea nursing a 3-2 lead over Cuba in the bottom of the ninth inning in the gold medal showdown, Kang was tossed after arguing balls and strikes with home plate umpire Carlos Rey. The angry catcher slammed his mask into the ground and threw his mitt toward the dugout on his way out. Cu

Olympic Games July 18, 2021

South Korean shipbuilders are forecast to report sluggish earnings in the second quarter of the year due to a sharp rise in prices of steel plates despite brisk orders, analysts said Sunday. POSCO, South Korea's leading steelmaker, has raised the prices of steel plates for ships to 1.15 million won ($1,007) per ton, up nearly two times from a year ago, they said. "A hike in prices of raw materials, including steel plates, will eat into leading shipbuilders' profits in the second quarter,&

Economy July 18, 2021

With his family watching him pitch in the majors in person for the first time, St. Louis Cardinals' South Korean starter Kim Kwang-hyun delivered an outstanding performance. While twirling six shutout innings against the San Francisco Giants in a 3-1 win at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on Saturday (local time), Kim had to keep his emotions in check. "I tried not to get caught up in the thoughts of my family and just focus on the game at hand," Kim said in his postgame Zoom session. He

Baseball July 18, 2021

North Korea's official newspaper on Sunday called on younger generations to speak the country's own standard language and follow traditional lifestyles, amid the regime's crackdown on language expressions widely used in South Korea. The Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the North's ruling Worker's Party, made the appeal in an article, saying, "The ideological and cultural penetration under the colorful colored signboard of the bourgeoisie is even more dangerous than enemies who are taking guns.&q

North Korea July 18, 2021

Renault Samsung Motors Corp. will temporarily suspend production at its plant in the southeastern port city of Busan due to shortages of chips for vehicles, the company said Sunday. The South Korean unit of Renault S.A. will close down its plant in Busan, 453 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on Monday for two days, it said. It will be the first time that the Renault Samsung plant has been shut down due to chip shortages, though rivals Hyundai Motor Co., Kia Corp. and GM Korea Co. have suspended

Industry July 18, 2021

St. Louis Cardinals' Kim Kwang-hyun has shut down the best team in the majors once again. The South Korean left-hander tossed six scoreless innings against the San Francisco Giants in a 3-1 victory at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on Saturday (local time). By winning his fourth consecutive start, Kim improved to 5-5 for the year and lowered his ERA from 3.11 to 2.87. Kim's scoreless innings streak has now reached 21. The last run Kim allowed came in the third inning of a home game against the Ar

Baseball July 18, 2021

South Korea's SK Innovation Co. will receive incentives worth 90 million euro ($106 million) from the Hungarian government for investing in the country with a project to build a battery plant, the company said Sunday. The energy and chemical subsidiary of the nation's No. 3 conglomerate, SK Group, has been constructing its second battery plant in Europe with an annual production capacity of 10 gigawatt hours in Komarom, a northwestern city of the European country, the company said. SK Innovati

Industry July 18, 2021

An additional 61 service members of South Korea's anti-piracy naval unit in waters off Africa have tested positive for the coronavirus, bringing the total caseload on their destroyer to 68, officials said Sunday. The figure is feared to rise further, as the test results of about 200 service members of the 300-strong Cheonghae Unit are expected to be available in the coming days. "Until now, we've received the test results on 101 service members, and 68 tested positive, with 33 negative,&q

Politics July 18, 2021