Toronto Blue Jays' South Korean starter Ryu Hyun-jin will make his first spring training appearance on his 35th birthday in Florida this week. The Blue Jays have announced Ryu as their starter against the Detroit Tigers at TD Ballpark in Dunedin, Florida, at 1:07 p.m. Friday (local time), or 2:07 a.m. Saturday (Seoul time). The left-hander will turn 35 that day. Ryu will be the last among five projected Toronto starters to take the mound in spring training. Jose Berrios, Alek Manoah and Yusei Ki

INCHEON -- When the SSG Landers signed former major league infielder Kevin Cron in December, they probably didn't think he'd be hitting below the Mendoza Line about halfway through the preseason. With the start of the regular season less than two weeks away, Cron is batting 3-for-19 (.158) with a home run and three RBIs in seven games in his first spring in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO). The preseason will wrap up next Tuesday, with the regular season starting on April 2. Cron

The last time South Korea defeated Iran in men's football was so long ago that Son Heung-min, the current national team captain and a transcendent star, was a raw 18-year-old who remained glued to the bench. Park Ji-sung and Lee Young-pyo, two legends of the game long since retired, played the entire 120 minutes, as the teams needed an extra 30 minutes to determine the winner. The 1-0 South Korean victory came in the quarterfinals of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup in January 2

For the first time this season, Son Heung-min has scored twice in a match for Tottenham Hotspur. Son's brace lifted Tottenham past West Ham United 3-1 in a Premier League contest at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Sunday (local time). Son found the back of the net in the 24th and again in the 88th minutes. With 13 goals this season, Son climbed into a tie for second place in the Premier League with Diogo Jota of Liverpool. They are seven back of another Liverpool star, Mohamed Salah. Son'

South Korean high jumper Woo Sang-hyeok captured a historic gold medal at the world indoor championships in Belgrade on Sunday, becoming the first athlete from the country to win a world title in any track and field event. Woo cleared 2.34 meters to top the field of 12 jumpers at the World Athletics Indoor Championships at Stark Arena in the Serbian capital. Loic Gasch of Switzerland took the silver at 2.31m, while Hamish Kerr of New Zealand and Gianmarco Tamberi of Italy shared a bronze. The

Hyunkyung Jeong, an 11th grader at the Chadwick International School, has won the KYGA 17th Ballon Blanc National Youth Golf Tournament hosted by the Korea Youth Golf Association last week. Jeong, also known as Ellena, ranked first with a 1-under par in the tournament held at the Baekje Country Club in South Chungcheong Province on March 14-15. Her win is more meaningful considering she had pulled through windy and foggy weather conditions during the tournament, the association said. Jeong

Former major leaguer Kang Jung-ho, whose once promising career was derailed by a series of off-field problems, is returning to baseball. The Kiwoom Heroes of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced Friday that they have signed their former All-Star shortstop to a one-year pact, extending a lifeline to a player who had abandoned a comeback bid two years ago. The Heroes said Kang will make the league minimum salary of 30 million won (US$24,750). Ko Hyung-wook, general manager of the Hero

South Korean figure skater Kim Ye-lim has withdrawn from the upcoming world championships after testing positive for COVID-19, the sport's national federation said Friday. An official with the Korea Skating Union (KSU) said Kim received a positive result from her polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test Thursday night and will not be able to skate at the world championships opening next Wednesday in Montpellier, France. Kim will have to isolate at home for seven days. The KSU official added that Lee

Two South Korean football clubs that faced each other last week have been struggling to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus inside their locker rooms, with another matchweek on the horizon. Ulsan Hyundai FC extended their lead atop the K League 1 tables by beating FC Seoul 2-1 last Friday. In the ensuing days, both clubs have seen multiple COVID-19 cases pop up. Ulsan had to play a playoff match at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League on Tuesday severely undermanned --

As one of the biggest names to sign with a South Korean baseball club, former National League All-Star Yasiel Puig is off to a slow start in his first preseason for the Kiwoom Heroes while also causing minor controversy off the field. Though he has gone 1-for-9 with three strikeouts in his first four games prior to Thursday, the Cuban slugger hasn't seemed fazed by his sluggish performance. Earlier this week, Puig uploaded a video of himself dancing, maskless, in an alley in Itaewon, a popular n

Mired in the bottom of the K League 1 tables, Seongnam FC signed veteran forward Lee Jong-ho in free agency Wednesday, tasking the 30-year-old with kick-starting a dormant offense. Lee will begin his 12th professional season with his fourth club and will join the only winless club so far in the K League 1 this season. With two draws and three losses, Seongnam FC sit two points back of Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in last place and have scored three times in those five games. Lee was a longtime franchi

South Korea's provisional roster for the baseball competition at this fall's Asian Games will be unveiled in early April, the country's professional league office said Wednesday, with the final roster expected to follow in early May. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), which oversees professional competition, said it will work closely with the Korea Baseball Softball Association (KBSA), the amateur governing body, in putting together the preliminary national team. The Korean Sport & Olymp

Pittsburgh Pirates' South Korean player Park Hoy-jun is scheduled to leave for the United States on Tuesday for spring training, having cleared all medical and administrative hurdles, his agency here said. An official with A•Spec Corp. said Park, a 25-year-old utility man, had recently tested positive for COVID-19 but had completed his mandatory quarantine. The official said it was a delay in getting Park's work permit processed, not his bout with the virus, that had kept the player from re

With one box checked, Paulo Bento has quickly shifted his focus to the next goal to achieve. Under his tutelage, South Korea have already booked a ticket to Qatar for this year's FIFA World Cup with two qualifying matches left. Few would have batted an eye if Bento had chosen to take his foot off the pedal for the rest of the current qualifying campaign. Instead, Bento on Monday called up most of his usual suspects in a bid to win his team's final two qualifying matches this month. South Korea w

Even with a World Cup spot secured, South Korea will not mess around in their next two qualifying matches, with many of their biggest stars named to the national team Monday. Head coach Paulo Bento unveiled his 25-man roster for South Korea's final two World Cup qualifiers scheduled for this month. Captain Son Heung-min, leading goal scorer for Tottenham Hotspur is back in the mix, as is Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Hwang Hee-chan and FC Girondins de Bordeaux forward Hwang Ui-jo. (Yonhap) &nb