Korean Series preview
Opening Joke
SA: It’s almost November and it feels like something’s missing.
JT: Did the K-POP demons steal your Cambridge sausage again? *joke sting*
SA: What, no! At least I hope not. That’s some expensive ass sausage.
JT: Then what’s missing?
SA: I got the sense of deja vu, but the deja’s not vu-ing *joke sting*. Like there’s something that should’ve happened this month but didn’t.
JT: Well it’s gotta be sports related. Sports in what way, though?
SA: Like something big, very big. But it hasn’t happened yet for some reason.
JT: Ohhhh I know what you mean! The Korean Series! It starts this weekend in November!
SA: No wonder I have deja vu! It usually starts in October! First time since 23 it started in November. We gotta talk about the teams today, Mr. J!
JT: We’re ready to place our bets, after this fake commercial made by…yours truly!
Bap Light presents #11
How did KT win the regular season championship?
SA: So, how did KT even win the regular season? It seemed like they were destined to drop to fourth place at several points.
JT: Well, we can start with their pitching. They have four solid starters, all boasting sub-3.60 ERAs. Logan Allen, a mid-season replacement, is technically the "worst" of their top four with a 3.59 ERA over 92 2/3 innings. He would probably be considered the weakest link of the staff, but he’s still incredibly solid. Then we have the ace of the staff, Ko Young-pyo, who turned in a very strong 3.28 ERA over just a bit more than 172 innings. Behind him is 25-year-old budding star So Hyeong-jun, who posted the lowest ERA of the domestic group at 3.15 over 131 innings. Finally, there is late-season replacement Davis Daniel, who was absolutely elite with a 2.13 ERA over 56 innings. KT possesses what most teams lack: two incredibly strong domestic pitchers in Ko and So, one excellent foreign ace in Daniel, and a very good complementary piece in Allen.
SA: Yes, those arms led KT to a spectacular second-half surge that propelled them to first place. Their slow start in the first half came from the inconsistent pitching of Matt Bushman and Matt Sauer, who were both cut, as well as So Hyeong-jun spending over a month on the disabled list with a shoulder strain after starting the season 3-0. Once So got healthy and management signed Daniel and Allen, KT boasted arguably the strongest four-man rotation in the league. Most teams only have two go-to stars followed by a middling third starter—which we saw with KIA, and now Samsung, especially with Won Tae-in having a bit of a down year. Then, obviously, KT has a highly capable bullpen. Despite a brutal mid-season collapse where their relief ERA ballooned to 6.59 from June onward, they started the year red-hot.
JT: That is correct. They are anchored by one of South Korea’s top relief pitchers, whom we saw dominate in both the Asian Games and the World Baseball Classic: Park Yeong-hyun. He is easily one of the top closers in the game, boosting the team with a 7-0 record, 30 saves in 56 appearances, and a fantastic 2.48 ERA. Their bullpen as a whole finished with a 4.68 ERA, ranking third in the league. That is highly respectable for a KBO bullpen, though as you mentioned, the second half wasn’t nearly as sharp as the first. Fortunately, having four reliable starters helps mitigate that issue, as they can pitch deep into games and hand a lead straight to their All-Star closer. But what about their bats?
SA: Well, they have a legitimate MVP candidate in Sam Hilliard, who finished near the top of almost every major offensive category. He was second in the league with 44 home runs—just behind our very own Kim Do-yeong, who hit his 45th on the final day of the regular season, no big deal! Hilliard also led the league in RBIs with 139, finishing ten ahead of René Pinto's 129. He ranked third in OPS at .967 and 13th in batting average at .304. On top of that, his defense was incredibly steady whenever you watched him play.
JT: Yes, if I weren't a KIA fan, Hilliard would definitely be my pick for MVP. But in my totally unbiased opinion, Do-yeong is the clear MVP. KIA was lost without him last year, missing the playoffs entirely, but rose to third place this season on the back of his offense. That said, KT also has a self-proclaimed MVP candidate who has received some serious backlash from KBO fans lately. Choi Won-jun has faced criticism for seeming more concerned with personal statistics and individual awards than team success. The former Tiger did have a fantastic season, racking up 208 hits—second only to Victor Reyes—and a superb .356 batting average, which was good for third place in the batting title race. Even so, I don't believe his overall impact was anywhere near Hilliard's or Do-yeong's in the MVP conversation. What are your thoughts?
SA: (your thoughts) and of course KT also has big free agent first base Kim Hyun Soo who had a very solid year having a 286 average and 95 RBI’s, then of course outfielder Ahn Hyun Min who missed a chunk of the season from a hamstring injury still put up solid numbers 298 average 63 RBIs in 98 games. So a very solid team all around in pitching and hitting.
JT: Indeed Mr. S, they will be tough to beat with all the rest they are getting and knowing they have 4 go to starters. Shaking my magic eight ball gotta say the outlook is not good for Samsung or KIA pending the results of Tonight and/or the weekend game.
KT’s Opponent
SA: Well, as we are recording on Friday morning, the series is 2 to 1 with Samsung leading. So we might know the direction this is heading by tonight, or we'll have to wait out the weekend if Naille can best Paddick again. I imagine if KIA wins tonight it will be Jurado vs Oller on Sunday..
JT: The only thing we do know for sure is that Mr. S’s prediction of an LG vs. KT Korean Series cost him his house and his wife. But hey, you’ll always be our legendary bap light Mr. "always wrong" Korean Series bettor guy. *joke sting*
SA: Careful now, you might be joining me on the porch soon, Mister J, cracking open an ice-cold Bap Light.
JT: Hey, at least my bracket survived longer than yours, sir! Hahaha. But man, I was totally wrong about KIA. I thought they’d be left in the dump like my grandma’s old KIA Sportage after what I thought would be a grueling LG series, but Kim Do Young has completely kept them alive. So, why don’t we talk about our hometown team first, Mr. S?
SA: Well, obviously, we have to talk about the starting pitching. KIA has two elite foreign aces at the top of the rotation in James Naille and Adam Oller
JT: Yes! Naille has been absolutely dominant this postseason. It was a shame about that errant pitch to Park Seung-kyu’s head in Game 1. He was absolutely cruising with a 5-1 lead before the automatic ejection. It sucked because his pitch count was incredibly low, and he looked easily poised to go 7+ innings, just like he did in Game 1 of the LG series. Giving up only one run in both of those playoff starts, he has firmly established himself as the postseason ace.
SA: Unlike their regular-season stats might suggest, Oller has posted some slightly more pedestrian postseason numbers. He beat LG with 6 solid innings but gave up 2 runs, and then he got pulled early in Game 2 of this Samsung series after getting knocked around for 5 runs in 4 ⅔ innings. While Oller has racked up 12 strikeouts over his 10 ⅔ postseason innings, he just hasn’t looked as dominant. To beat Samsung, they’ll need two rock-solid starts out of Oller and Naille moving forward.
JT: Then, obviously, Kim Do Young is having an absolute MVP-caliber postseason, and every pitcher in the league is fearing his bat. I was fortunate enough to catch his two-homer game in Game 1 against LG—and yes, you actually saw this ugly mug celebrating on the live Korean broadcast after his second home run! Woo-hoo! But his grand slam in the first inning of Game 3 was the real cherry on top of that series. He has been an absolute force to be reckoned with.
SA: Harold Castro has also been on fire this postseason, both with his clutch hitting and his incredibly steady defensive skills at first base. He and Do-Young have felt like a real dynamic duo out there.
JT: Just sprinkle in the occasional big hit from Na Sung Bum, and the 3, 4, and 5 hitters have perfectly done their jobs in the postseason so far.
SA: Exactly. Because Castro is hitting so well right behind him, opposing teams are forced to pitch to Do Young for the most part, even if pitchers still try to work around him in high-leverage situations.
JT: And what if Samsung advances? If so, KTs got a tougher opponent that they did not win more games against.
SA: Indeed Mr. J, but only by two games. Against Samsung their batting average is 269 whereas against Kia it is 284 and they have struck out fewer Samsung batters than Kia batters.
JT: But they easily beat the Lions in the last 3 games of the regular season, which included Hilliard hitting a grand slam in the last home game.
SA: Samsung was competitive against them for some of the season but September’s bad luck caught up with them.
JT: Samsung will need to recover their earlier form and get some injury luck to stand a chance. I believe Samsung has the better hitters compared to KIA in Kim Gi Chan as he always seems to be on base, Goo Ja Wook hitting very well, Diaz a top foreign hitter over the past years, and of course trusty rusty Cho Hyong Woo, but I feel Oller, Naille and Siwakawa have been better than Jurado, Paddock and Choi Won Tae/WOn Tae in.
SA: We’ve told everyone our opinions, so now let’s see what the KT fan base has to say.
A KT fan interview (insert recording or voices here) [Also ask about new stadium rumors]
All right. We've invited a very popular, very excited KT fan, Mr. Jacob. Welcome to the show. Thanks for having me, guys. Thanks for the invitation. Looking forward to it. Why KT of all teams? I hope you don't hear my dogs in the background. I'm sorry if you do. [Barking] I was just kidding. I'm a big KT fan because when I first came to Korea, I came on the Epic program, which is the English teachers program. And when they, when you apply for that, you have to get placed. You don't get much of a choice. So they put me into Hwaseong city, which is south of Seoul a bit. And the closest team was KT. And so I thought, why not? Why not them? And as I got to know more about them, I really liked the color scheme. I liked the logos and that kind of stuff appeals to me a lot when I'm getting into a new league. If the jerseys look nice, that helps a lot. And then I liked that they were the new team. Like when I first got into it around 2017, they were pretty bad 'cause they were the expansion team. And so I like, look, I'll get it on the ground floor. And hopefully if we see some success, it'll feel more meaningful than just picking the best team. And when they won in 2021, it felt pretty good to see them grow like that. So that's why I'm a KTFAM. - Respect, respect, I like it. Same reason why I'm a KTFAM. - Respect, respect, I like it. Same reason why I'm a KFM. Got a place here. (laughing) I got a little luckier than you. I got the Yankees of Korea, but no big deal. - Any reasons of good reason if you ask me. - All right. Question two, how many games have you been to this season? - This season, not too many. I don't live in Hwaseong anymore. I live in Paju, which if you know, that's pretty far north. So I don't get too many chances to see them. But I think I've been to two this year, two or three. I don't keep track, but I went. My parents came to visit Korea this year. And so we were able to go go see a game in Suwon with their new renovations. We got the table seats. And that was the first time I ever had those. We got the table seats and that was the first time I ever had those table seats behind the plate and that was really fun. And how did the parents think about KBO fandom? They love it. They've been here before. It's not their first time, but you know, they're huge baseball fans themselves. So every time they've visited, they're like, okay, we don't really care what we do, but we got to go see a game It's just something you can't get back home Yeah, my dad went to my dad went to his first key a game this year and he was upset that I didn't take him sooner Yeah, it's it's I think it's the most fun you can have in the country if you ask me. Yeah, take notes. Take notes MLB Is your father more of a traditionalist fan or is he happy with any sort of baseball? - I think he just loves live sports, just like I do. I think he just loves, we just called yesterday and he was talking about it again and he's like, "Man, I can't believe that you can just order the food "outside and carry it in." And the fans, they never stop cheering. And it's like, yeah, that's really, that's what it's all about. They really, they love the sport so much. - So how do you get to games? And what do you think about the new subway station that the complex is getting soon? - I, to get ready for this interview, I listened to your a couple episodes of the podcast. And I, the one you guys did on KT, you had Andrew on I've actually met Andrew he and I went to a game together once and I kind of echo his sentiments about how it's not the easiest stadium to get to. I haven't been to the mall yet but I've been through quite a few and you know you go to the Seoul stadiums and there's usually a subway station within walking distance and that you know a packed train can be tough but it's still a train when you go to the you go to Suwon it's you got to take a bus there or a taxi and honestly if you're willing to pay the price I think the taxi is the best option because those buses can get packed um and I completely support any and all public transportation 'cause I'm a big fan of it here 'cause I'm from Northern Wisconsin and the United States where we don't have a whole lot of it. So I love it here, man. I'll take the bus or the train anywhere. But when you get to the game day. - Are you a Milwaukee Brewers fan then? So you're celebrating possibly two series championship. I am. I am a huge Brewers fan. I yesterday was one of the greatest days, as you can imagine. And so I'm looking for the double, as they say in European soccer. Right. I'm looking for two in one year. That'd be pretty great. And you're missing out on Packers Thursday night football right now. Man, just a beautiful week for you. - It's, now, I will say I'm not a Packers fan. I'm just the one Wisconsin sports fan team I don't cheer for. - A shocker. - I could get a long story for that. But I'm actually a Panthers fan who the Packers are playing today. - You're missing out on the Panthers. - I am. I am. But I don't think football season starts until baseball season ends. So I'm not focused too much on that right now. I got about two more weeks then with the KTVs coming in. That's right. Eventually coming in. It's been a long season. Speaking of which, what are your thoughts about this season? Well, I'm, you know, hard to be have too many complaints as a KT fan. They had a great, great season this year. They, um, they took the lead with quite a few, um, months and weeks to go and they, they've held it. And so I've had, I've had a great time. I've, I've loved that An-hyun Min has come back from his injury playing very well. Obviously, Hillier is having an amazing season. Anytime you get that kind of production out of your foreign bat, it's a great year. It seems like a lot of the players and good additions to the team, Choi Won-joon and Kim Hyun-soo and the pitchers have been as good as KBO pitchers can be. As I'm sure you guys know that it can be kind of rough sometimes, but I like the odds. - You got a solid four starters. We talked about that today. You're solid four starters and you got the all-star closer. So they go seven innings, you're good. - You know, you never feel completely comfortable watching any baseball, but KBO baseball can be a little rough sometimes. All of the full things. Well, but I'm as confident as you can probably be. But that doesn't, you know, you never know. Speaking of which, not so much on pitching, but on hitting. What's your thoughts on Hilliard? Do you think he'll stick around for another time, especially if MLB goes into lockout next year, or do you think he's bound for better leagues? That's a great question. I think the lockout is a big, you know, what if, like what, you know, because he's definitely played himself into, I'm sure there's all kinds of teams. I'm more and more, the KBO is becoming more and more legitimate as a league. You know, you see both the Korean players and the foreign players get back to the MLB and at least become serviceable 'cause I'm a big Brewer's fan. We saw Eric Thames go back there and put up a couple of solid seasons. I mean, it's hard to imagine him turning down MLB if they come calling. But like you said, the lockout. So that's a good question. - Good timing too for KT. Unfortunately for the rest of the KBO. Honestly, yes. Oh, man. Yeah, I mean, Kias doesn't have a solid, I would say, like Castro, but he's nowhere near Hilliard. And but he also Castro missed probably a month and a half of the seat. We had that. do you remember our, what was our replacement guy that we had? Do you guys remember, was the Mexican guy? - Oh yeah, Rodriguez. - Yeah, Rodriguez. - Yeah, like 11 dingers and his first seven hits were home runs. So yeah, I mean, I wish we had Hilliard. If Hilliard you want to come to Kia, welcome. So yeah, I mean I wish we had Hillier if you want to come to Kia welcome Who would you rather face in the Korean series Samsung or Kia? I know you I know you are Kia fan I heard that I listened to the episodes and so for that I mean Honestly, you know, okay, so if you look at the standings, obviously Samsung was the second highest team. So you would think that they would be stronger, but I think I would be really interested to see Kia 'cause I'll also love Kim Do-young, you know, I would love to see him in the Korean series. I really want to see him and Ahn Hyun-min go head to head as the two young stars of the league. But whichever team is gonna give the whiz four wins, I think that's the one I choose. - Well, I would not want Kiya to go 'cause I don't want them to lose their perfect streak in the Korean series. And I just think your starters are better than our starters. And unfortunately that's what with your rest, your, what is it, been now almost a month of rest. You guys need, you guys will be well rested and and just Kia has probably burnt out at this point, unfortunately. It's a definite challenge to go through that gauntlet, to go face whichever team's waiting for you at the end. Do you feel like KT will have a bit of rust for being off for so long because, you know, this series should have started at least last week, but because of all the rainouts and heat waves and snow warnings and stuff, it's extended a bit longer than most fans would have liked. It's always a that's always a good question because you hear a lot of foreign fans who are not familiar with the KBO when they first hear about this playoff system a lot of them kind of balk at it Like what do you mean like what do you mean that this team gets that big of an advantage? And they get to rest for so long and then you fire back and say well Is it rest or rust because you're just waiting around for the other team? I'm on team rest I think it's a good. I think it's a well earned advantage because they play a hundred forty four games And they're it's equal across you know, everyone plays each other equal amount. I think the first place team earns a significant advantage but um It's a good question because you know whoever it is Kira Samsung will be have been playing Just this week and he hasn't played like you said for close to a month and it's cold. You know, it's cold now. It's getting cold in Korea. And I was watching the game last night and you know, you're the guys are wearing the turtle necks and the long sleeves, you know, it's playoff baseball. And I think that would be kind of a, you know, I remember playing sports in that kind of weather and it's hard to get warm. It's hard to get your muscles going. And so the Bufalonians, so I got the same thing. That's why I'd probably be at the game with my shirt off anyways. (laughing) - Just take it all the way the other direction. - Fill up paint and stuff on your chest too. - I mean, it's mental. Like I remember playing snow games, it's awful. - No, I never, you know, you and I both, I guess if you're from Buffalo, you know, you know, you and I both, I guess if you're from Buffalo, you know, that time, the coolest I've ever been is playing baseball during the spring. Yep. And old games, man. That's a pitcher too. You can't get loose. You're just like, oh, why is it so cool? You get a jam shot off those aluminum bats and your hands just go numb for like a whole inning. - They're gonna like shock him. Just a shock and you're like shaking home. - Yeah. - Don't miss those days. - No. - Should've lived in Florida. (laughing) Oh yeah, so that's definitely gonna play into it as well. Especially the wooden bets. They have a little more or less shock absorbing 'cause the metal bats at least have the tape. I guess they're using the tape now, but back when I used to play D2, we had wooden bats and we didn't have the tape. We just had the spray and just it was not fun. So that will play into an even more effect for the teams that have been playing. KT at least has the wrestle. I think they'll be mentally ready and prepared. Like I think it's going to be an easy KT win, especially if they play Samsung, Gu Ja-Ouk has a hamstring injury. So he's not playing outfield, which means you can't bat Cheyong-U every game. And as you saw game two, Cheyong-U was just changed that lineup. They won the smoke doler. I had no chance. They won, they smoked Ole. They had no chance. - Well, I saw him play in the outfield. They had Che Yong-woo play in the left field 'cause they needed his bat in there and they needed Koo Ja-ook in there too. And I'm like, man, I saw him try to catch a foul ball and he's not moving too well out there. - Well, he's still got an arm and he's trusty rusty if he can get to the ball. - And he can hit and he, when he gives up, he's gonna get it right back on offense. So He's out there. - But he's still got an arm and he's trusty rusty if he can get to the ball. - And he can hit, and he run he gives up, he's gonna get it right back on offense. So maybe it's fine. - Yeah, with Todd D'Rolling in the episode, the guy's gonna play until he's 99. (laughing) He can keep going. - On this condition he's going to do. - Yeah. (laughing) He's not slowing down. - Yeah, Keah unfortunately couldn't hold on to him. I think he wanted to go back to Samsung, his original team. But I mean, it was, he was my favorite player. I was devastated when he left. - He's great. Yeah, every time I've seen him, I think every game I've ever watched him play, he hits a home run or something great. It just doesn't seem to ever slow down. - He's the Barry Bons of the KBO right now. Actually I guess Che Jung would be, but he does have the most RBIs in the league. So I mean, I miss him on Kia and I imagine LG's probably missing Kim Hyun-soo. How did you like that addition to free agents? - I was surprised. I guess I was surprised that I thought for sure that he would retire in Seoul, you know, even if he went back to Busan. But you know, he can do so and he's been he's been great. Great veteran presence on the team. And veteran presence is very important. So like you clearly changes how teams play and how teams repair. So I agree with that 100% I'm gonna be the ones to file the minority report here and say that KT may struggle in game one Until the rust comes off and then the series could go I'm not gonna say it's gonna be an easy Samsung victory or even a Samsung victory per se. I just don't think they've got the pitching for it Especially if they're closer out for the year But it could go five or six games depending on wetter related things to some faith they've got the pitching for it, especially if they're closer out for the year. But it could go five or six games depending on weather related things. I think it's gonna rain on Sunday. So that might even cause the game to be postponed until Monday. - As Daniel, do you think it'll be the starter or are you gonna give it to Logan or Go Young Kyo? What do you think? Who's game one? - Great question. Great question. From what I've saw, again, I unfortunately don't get to watch too many games now because I work at a hog line, which is later in the evening. But Daniel seems to be, have come in and patched really well. So I'd probably give it to him. But like you said, like those guys at the top are all pretty good. I'm, I'm, I'm a big cool young PO fan. Me too. That's what I'm saying. Start him. I think that would be a great choice too. It seems like he had the pitches really well or really bad. Normally good. Normally good. I saw him. I got to see him live pitch a complete game shut out against Kiyom last year or the two years ago. And he's on. His changeup falls off the table and that arm you know, that arm angle like is so unique and it's just so hard to see him. But I feel pretty good about any of the three. Maybe give it to the guy who's been there before, like, you know, Ko Young-Pyo, the start as the kind of veteran presence and then let the, don't put so much pressure on the foreigners maybe. I don't think you can go wrong anywhere really. - If I'm the coach, I'm going with Go 'cause he's the veteran guy. And as you said, it's just his arm angle and his off speed is just nasty. Where Daniel, he had a good, he was a replacement so he hasn't pitched much, but he's good. So I'll go him game two. Then obviously, I just don't trust Logan enough to go him three. So I go to Sohyang June who's had a good year and Then possibly go back to Alan if we got a good series lead if we close I'm going right back to go young peel and game for use Logan the bullpen. I Like it you can hire you for the bench. It sounds pretty good to me unfortunately key in Samsung don't have the benefit of having four solid arms. They have two really solid arms and one, well like Wante In, I don't know what happened to him this year. Like at the end of the last year, he was kind of, I think he had dead arms or arms. So that's why I don't think he's had a great year this year, but he's still, maybe he can turn it back to the last year. Then Samsung has probably got a better staff if want a in was healthy But I don't know that they for me as two pitchers for Kia and Samsung and then they're screwed For me it's always thinking about the battle of the bullpins and kt clearly has the advantage in bullpins this season It's just a matter of whether or not They're gonna keep their you know their streak going from going from September and October into November, where, you know, they come in seven, eight, nine, especially in KT. As you live in Poggio, you understand that the cold winds are going to be coming in in the evening. And, oh, that's not so fun. Is it? No, I, I always think about that when you tell me, I was the major leaguers, because like, not get the, the figurative sense of you being cold. You come out of the bullpen, you got to warm up, but then it's actually naturally cold. And I man, I did not like playing baseball and cold weather. I could tell you or like everything, you know, I played football and I had two American football and it was the same thing. Everything hurts a little bit more. Like if you get the same thing. Everything hurts a little bit more. Like if you get hit or whatever, everything hurts a little bit more and your muscles just don't get acclimated to it. So yeah, I mean the bullpen, like I said, like you said as well, is definitely a strength of KT. Um, anytime you can throw out, you know, parking on at the end of the game, you feel pretty good about it. They have other quality guys as well, they have. So, Kim O-Rae is the holds leader this year. And then Sung Dong Hyun. And these guys that like, you're not too scared giving them the ball, which can be not always the case. So, you gotta feel pretty good about it as a KT fan, but again, you never know. You just never know. >> Who's the lefty? Like, Wonsuk is the lefty? The star of the show. >> Wonsuk. >> Yeah, if you play Kia, he's always owned Kia too. So like, he's not like one of your better arms, but for some reason, Wonsuk has just had Kia's number this year. Every time I watch him, I'm just like, why can't we hit this guy? >> Yeah, he had a rough year this year, but maybe he's just matchups, maybe, you know, he never knows. - Like, yeah, during against Key, he's great. Like I said, like when I watch him, I'm like, 'cause I bet quite often. I'm like, when he's pitching against other teams, I seem start and I'm like, yep, I'll take that. But when he's against Key, I'm just like, we're making him look like Saiyan over here. (laughing) When it comes to cold weather, I got a question. What do you think, who would affect more? The batters or the pitchers? What do you think? - Great question. I was never a pitcher. So I can't speak from that experience, but I gotta give, like we said, I think it's gotta be the batter for me because those, you know, like, you got, like if said, I think it's gotta be the batter. Like for me, because those, you know, those like, you got, like if you're trying to catch the ball on like the outside and you try to stretch for it, your muscles, you know, that just screams to me, you're gonna, you know, pull a muscle. You got a jam shot, like we said, that's gonna just numb your hands and like, I don't know. I don't, again, I don't have much experience on the pitching side, but I would probably give it to the hitters. - Yeah, I mean, it's hard for the hitters, but I mean, I was a hitter and a batter. So when I pitched, it was just hard to get loose. And like when your arms feel in it, you're losing speed off your fastball. But again, even if you're losing speed off your fastball, the shock is still hitting that bat no matter how hard you're throwing. So it's a tough call. I've always wondered, like, what did I hate more pitching or hitting? And I never could decide. I was wondering if you had any insight, because it both sucked. It's just cold weather just awful. I imagine, yeah, I imagine night through sides having a good time out there. So, yeah, well, it's nice to have you on the show and nice to have a fellow North, Northerner who's used to the freezing cold weather. We've got one more question for you. Great. I've heard some rumors in the press that there's the possibility of replacing the KT Wiz Park. So I want to know if you'd heard any of those rumors and whether or not they should pursue a dome stadium or an open air stadium like they currently have or even put the stadium in a different complex elsewhere in the city which Suwon is quite big but I don't think it's that big. It's not like they can just scoop up land from another part of the province. Yeah I have heard a little bit about it. I don't live in Suwon so I can't speak exactly where would be the best place to it but But of course, like, you know, if they build a new one, I don't think the KTWIS park itself is too bad. I think it could stick around. I don't think I don't have any complaints about the park itself. But you know, any new stadium could be very exciting. Of course, so I'm a Milwaukee Brewers fan, like we talked about, and if you know they have a retractable roof in Milwaukee and well, I agree with most people that open-air stadiums are more aesthetically Beautiful like they look nicer. That's what that's what you think of when you think of baseball The practicality of a roof is just so it's good. You know, it's so underrated You know, like we talked like one of the key of Samsung games got rained out, right? Like how annoying is that? Like when you're like, oh, it pushes the season back, pushes the season back. In Korea, we have like entire weeks almost where there's no baseball because it just rains the whole week. So having a dome would be really nice. A retractable roof is even better if you ask me, but I know those are really expensive. So I would support, you know, I guess it's not my money. It's easy for me to say, go build a new one. But I guess I just would like it by any means, it would like it to be easier to get to the stadium, whatever that means. So if it's a subway means, it would like it to be easier to get to the stadium, whatever that means. So if it's a subway station, that's great. Public transport, more important than stadium. It'd probably be easier to just add a bus line or add trains, you know. I don't have any complaints about the WIS stadium currently, so I think they could stick around if they... It certainly was much better than the previous stadium, the Suwon public stadium, which didn't have proper toilets in the women's restrooms. Yeah, I'd like your parents to that. Don't worry, mom, just squat, I guess. I think I think anything's better than that. Yeah. Well, a dome also would be better for the summer just now that it's tropical. It feels tropical in Korea. So like having some climate control in summertime will help the players and the fans at least cool down on the inside of the stadium, hopefully. - When you go to a game and go chop during the summer, you know, it's humid and you're sweating on your way in and you go inside and you're like, okay, this is pretty nice. It's not the most it's not the prettiest inside. But you're like, I don't really complain about that right now. I'm not needing an extra pair of clothing for my my cheering. I need I need an outfit for every inning in Guanzhou. No kidding. I different shirts, man. I tell you. Well, thanks for coming, man. It was fun talking and hopefully we'll see you in the Korean series, Kia, but probably not. I don't have high hopes, but I think now we'll get the wind of night, but I just don't think Ola's gonna beat Haraito on Sunday. - You never know. Thanks for having me, guys. It was a lot of fun. - All right. - Thanks for coming on. - We had fun too.
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Worst Persons
Nap: Audit Reveals Collapse Risks in Major Sports Facilities-Chosun Daily
Radon: Jeonnam Dragons player expelled from team for assault
2nd Radon: Kim Ha-Seong Gets F- grade by Braves media
Plutonium: British fan arrested for racially harassing Eom Ji-sung of Swansea City
SA: Ohhhh no not the music. Not now.
JT: Run from it, hide in the closet, you can’t escape… the Halloween edition of worst persons in the sports world! And it’s scary!!!
SA: Where’s my aspirin? *Joke sting*
JT: The Bulhwa or fluoride award goes to… the Korea baseball & softball association which is under investigation for funneling government-sponsored projects to companies registered under the names of the association’s spouses, according to reports in KBS News.
SA: Apparently the director of the amateur association is a former pro pitcher and in 2021 he tried to get his friend Mr. Hong, a university teacher, to run the company that won the bid but he declined so the director made his wife CEO instead. And he wasn’t the only leader in the organization to do this as was noted in an audit of the Ministry of Sports and follow-up interviews. The investigators and the media even have recorded conversations between Hong and the director.
JT: Yes lordy, there are tapes. *joke sting*
SA: So basically this is a scandal that relates to insider bid manipulation and embezzlement. Critics have called on the auditors to investigate further, which means there will be more shocking allegations to check on.
JT: Sports Ethics Center is gonna miss Christmas at this rate.
SA: We’ll be talking about them again soon, but first we’ve got the 납 award which goes to… the cities in charge of stadiums around Korea! Remember the NC Dinos aluminum siding collapse tragedy?
JT: How could we forget the poor women who died?
SA: Well, that triggered an audit of other stadiums, whose results made it to the Chosun Daily on the 21st which is why I need to take blood thinners now. *Joke sting* The auditors found five large domestic sports facilities, including Seoul’s Gocheok Sky Dome and Incheon’s Munhak Stadium, face partial collapse risks during heavy snowfall or strong winds due to subpar reinforcement work.
JT: Good thing it never snows or gets breezy here in the land of the morning calm! Oh wait… it does!
SA: As we in Gwangju learned during the incident when the building fell on the bus, (mocking voice) ehhh it’s close enough (end voice) doesn’t work well in large construction projects. Speaking of which, the audit also learned that Gocheok’s management stated a maximum evacuation time of 50 minutes. You know what the international standard for stadium evacuation is?
JT: 30 minutes? I know some of them gigantic Texas stadiums will take some time.
SA: 8 minutes.
JT: Shiittt. I could escape from 6 stadiums in the time I’d need to clear Gocheok. Are fans buying hot dawgs on their way out? *Joke sting*
SA: And the auditors also said it would cost 800 billion to fix all the structural issues and have a little left over to fix the high e.coli levels in the swimming pools. Still wanna take the kids to the pool?
JT: Can I set the water on fire first? *Joke sting* And people say swimming in mountain streams is dangerous. But no, I don’t wanna die watching bad baseball or football.
SA: Speaking of football, we come to our Radon award, which goes to… my second favorite team but not this season, the Jeonnam Dragons! Specifically the player they had to fire after he was caught abusing a junior player according to reports in the Sports Donga.
JT: Yeah we’re gonna get put in the explicit category again after this episode.
SA: Another recent article went into further detail, with details like player A hitting the victim with a liquor bottle after he didn’t come to his room to fold his laundry.
JT: So he was treating the rookie like a battered spouse?
SA: Basically. Later in the season he told the rookie to drink with him at various bars and would complain about the state of his face and hit him because he was mad the victim had so many facial injuries from the abuse.
JT: After an incident in which the victim was hit on the shoulder, he called his parents and together they reported the abuse to the team. Player A tried to gaslight the parents with a fake apology but they didn’t buy it and ended the meeting, and the team terminated A’s contract under Article 14.
SA: The league’s disciplinary committee is already weighing additional punishment for the player, which could include up to 10 game suspension and a 5 million won fine.
JT: So what’s Jeonnam’s record this year?
SA: They’re in 16th place.
JT: Geee I wonder why! He couldn’t kick the ball so he decided to hit the bottle instead. That’s some winning spirit there! *Joke sting*
SA: And people wonder why I need low sodium salt now.
JT: Get ready for more salt! A second Radon award goes to… Kim Ha-seong of the Atlanta Braves but let’s face the facts here, he’s probably not getting a new contract. As reported in OSEN online, Braves media sites like SportsTalkATL gave Kim Ha-seong an F- Grade and called his $20M/yr contract a complete waste of money. Kim was injured in a slip & fall in January and needed surgery in the U.S. to repair a ruptured tendon in his right middle finger.
SA: He didn’t get to play for the Braves until May 13th, and this season’s numbers were brutal. .116 average over 51 games, recording 0 home runs, 9 RBIs, 11 runs, and an OPS of .359 and in the playoffs he had no hits.
JT: SportsTalkATL among others said he should have sat out the entire season and they blamed him for why they lost to the Dodgers.
SA: Well, he wasn’t the only reason. Striking out 10 times to Yamamoto didn’t help. Oye…
JT: You’re gonna need to take all the supplements after this episode *joke sting*. The Plutonium award goes to… the British fan that is now facing criminal charges for racially harassing Swansea City player Eom Ji-sung. The fan clearly forgot that he was in the UK and not Italy.
SA: Gotta remember the footie leagues in the UK don’t tolerate that kinda harassment. According to the BBC, on the 16th, the London Metropolitan Police stated that they arrested a 51-year-old man at his home on suspicion of causing racial harassment, anxiety, and mental distress to Eom Ji-sung during a match on the 14th. While Eom was warming up in the first half, the fan yelled racist remarks at him, which a referee heard and halted the match for 15 minutes while stadium staff went looking for the perpetrator.
JT: The Swansea manager Vítor Matos said after the match, “There is no place in football for such unacceptable behavior,” adding, “Eom Ji-sung is upset due to this situation, and we will stand by him until the end.” Seems like some fans just don’t know how to behave, Mr. S!
SA: Whatever happened to “you suck!” And “you couldn’t kick an exercise ball!”? You gotta keep it classy yet insulting, English sports fans! And this is why my doctor wants me on all the statins. *joke sting*
GOTW
SA Pick: K-League 2 Daegu FC vs Suwon FC Sat 4:30pm battle for automatic promotion begins. Women's K-League Mungyeong hosting Incheon Sat 2:00pm.
JT Pick: Baseball and Golf (2026 Lexus Masters at club72cc (they have player songs and fan interactions now) with 2 Americans & 2 Canadians / KLPGA 20th S-Oil championship at Elysian Jeju with 1 Chinese and 1 Thai golfer)
SA: It’s time for Game of the Week! This week I’m picking games that will not be canceled by the weather! First up will be K-League!
JT: Yeah but there’s not much going on in K-League 1. The playoffs there just started and Seoul FC won the championship before they even began. So they don’t have much to play for other than ACLE matches.
SA: That means I’ll focus on K-League 2 with Daegu FC hosting Suwon FC tomorrow at 4:30pm which I mistyped as a dollar sign because I have fat fingers *joke sting*. Anyway Daegu is 2 points behind Suwon for the automatic promotion slot with 4 matches to go and a big logjam of teams behind the Samsung Bluewings, so Daegu needs a win here to get into that spot. Suwon’s coach wants to prove his promotion bonafides in K2 once again so expect there to be great footie this weekend in Daegu and across the league!
JT: First up for me is quite obvious the final game or games of the Korean Series Semi Final, starting tonight at KIA Champions Field Starting at 6:30 on Korean local channels been 5 or 11 on my TV set, the game will kick off with KIA Tiger James Naille taking the mound vs Samsung Lions Chris Paddack. In game 1 in Daegu they both went less than 5 innings for different reasons, As mentioned before Naille was on cruise control with a 5 -1 lead in the fourth before hitting a batter in the head which in KBO is an immediate ejection, whereas Paddack was knocked around and pulled because of ineffectiveness vs KIA batters.
SA:If KIA wins then I imagine Oller and Jurado will duel Sunday afternoon for a trip to the Korean series.
JT: That is correct Mr. S and you know KT is hoping for KIA to win tonight to extend the series and give less rest for their future opponents players, either way in my most unbiased opinion GO TIGERS!
SA: GO TIGERS!!! Next up for me is Women’s K-League action! It’s the last game of the regular season and this one’s a doozy! Sangmu the military team vs Incheon Red Angels Saturday at 2PM. The Red Angels are out of the playoff picture but they can make a halloween nightmare for Sangmu by winning. If Sangmu wins they advance to the playoffs because Seoul Amazons already played and tied Hwacheon. That game was played back in September because Hwacheon is in the AFC Champions league and they play a team from North Korea this Sunday 5:30 in Hwacheon. Which when you think about it, should also be a game of the week!
JT: Is it Naegohyang again?
SA: No but the team has a really long and ridiculous name so I’m gonna ignore it. They are also a good team which probably means its the national team again.
JT: We’ll have to pull those threads on our North Korean Sports episode, but first we need to finish with my last choice! I am talking about the 2026 LEXUS Masters over at Club72 CC in Incheon! And let me tell you, this is not your traditional, quiet golf tournament. Lexus completely flipped the script this year—we’re talking full-blown player walk-up songs echoing across the fairways and crazy fan interactions. They literally built a 'High-Five Zone' right on the course where the gallery was slapping hands with the players mid-round!
SA: They are trying to make Golf like the KBO fan experience. What’s next?
JT: Maybe competitive watching paint dry competitions with a paint splash zone. The event started yesterday going through Sunday, So get over there and cheer your hearts out, Here is hoping Happy Gilmour shows up.
Ending
Copy Ending from previous multi-host episode
JT: A shoutout to our listeners in Pout Senegal! They’re famous for mangos and cabbage. Someone call the kimchi association! We’ve found their long sought-after backup cabbage supplier!
SA: Pout’s football club made it to the semi-finals in the club’s first season! That’s nothing to Pout about *joke sting*. Here’s hoping next season goes just as well.
JT: We’ll be back in two weeks with a discussion on Korea’s dome madness along with more baseball and football talk!
SA: It’s always infrastructure week in Korea *joke sting*.
JT: Get your hard hats and betting slips ready, Korean sports fans.
(AI voice) Guests of the Hwai-ting sports podcast get discounted shoes at Croc-offs in scenic Yongin! Need shoes built for damp days? Have a fungal infection from bathing too often in the ratty saunas? Croc-offs sells the cheapest knock-off Crocs this side of the DMZ! They can even turn some of your current sandals into Crocs with their patented shoe hole-punching machines for half off! (Speed up this part) Not responsible for foot injuries!
NOTES
https://m.sports.naver.com/kfootball/article/311/0002072222