Speedy outfielders and slick-fielding infielders became the latest members of the commemorative team marking the 40th anniversary of professional baseball in South Korea on Monday. Since July, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) has been revealing four new members for its 40 Legends team. The new quartet comprises: former outfielder Jeon Jun-ho, another ex-outfielder Lee Soon-chul, former second baseman Jeong Keun-woo and former shortstop Park Jin-man. Jeon, 34th in the voting by a panel of ex

On July 10, the Kiwoom Heroes, thanks to a three-game winning streak, sat only 2.5 games behind the SSG Landers for first place in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO). The Landers had been at the top of the standings since the start of the season, but the Heroes were making a hard push. Their record stood at 54-30-1 (wins-losses-ties). Fast forward to Tuesday, as the Heroes enter a new week of action in third place, now 13.5 games back of the Landers. The Heroes have gone 7-18-1 since July 10

In a bid to sign with a major league club, South Korean high school pitching prospect Shim Jun-seok has decided to skip the annual rookie draft in the South Korean league. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced Wednesday that Shim, the third-year right-hander for Duksoo High School in Seoul, did not register for the Sept. 15 draft. The deadline to enter the draft was midnight Tuesday. Shim, 18, has been a highly-touted prospect since his freshman year in 2020, when he went 4-1 in eight

The SSG Landers, fresh off yet another productive week, are in the midst of a potentially historic season in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO). On Saturday, they became the first team to reach the 70-win mark this year by beating the Doosan Bears 8-2. The next day, they edged out the Bears 5-4 in extra innings, thanks to Choi Jeong's go-ahead solo home run in the top of the 10th. With five wins in their past six games, the Landers' record now stands at 71-31-3 (wins-losses-ties), 9

In the midst of their second-half surge, the NC Dinos announced Thursday they've acquired new American pitcher Matt Dermody. Dermody will make $220,000 for the rest of the ongoing Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season, including a $40,000 signing bonus. Dermody, with 30 big league games to his credit, will replace Wes Parsons, who was released last week after posting a 1-2 record with a 3.56 ERA in eight starts. Parsons had not pitched since May 14 with a back injury. Dermody, a 32-year-

The SSG Landers remain so far ahead of the pack in South Korean baseball this year that other contenders are essentially playing for second place. The defending Korean Series champions KT Wiz have entered the chat. The Landers hold an eight-game lead over the LG Twins with 44 games left in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season. Barring a collapse of epic proportions, the Landers should be able to claim the regular season crown. The Twins and the Kiwoom Heroes kept trading places all last

Few players in baseball are as hot as Kim Ha-seong right now. The South Korean infielder for the San Diego Padres enjoyed his first career four-hit game against the Colorado Rockies at Petco Park in San Diego on Tuesday (local time), going 4-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs scored in a 13-5 victory. It was the first game of a doubleheader, Kim fell a home run shy of a cycle, as he had two singles, a double and a triple. Former Texas Rangers All-Star Choo Shin-soo is so far the only South Korean

Amid rumors that he could be dealt ahead of the annual trade deadline this week, Tampa Bay Rays infielder Choi Ji-man has surpassed his RBI total from last season. Choi collected two RBIs despite going hitless in four at-bats in a 5-3 loss to the Cleveland Guardians at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, on Sunday (local time). Choi was the designated hitter and got his second straight start at the leadoff spot. After striking out in the first inning, Choi knocked in a run with a groundo

South Korea's western city of Incheon will host former major league sluggers and celebrities in a global home run derby tour in September, the event's organizers said Thursday. "FTX MLB Home Run Derby X" will stop in Incheon, some 30 kilometers west of Seoul, on Sept. 17. London hosted the inaugural event on July 9, and the tour will also visit Mexico City in October. Major League Baseball (MLB) announced the birth of the new bracket-style competition in March. It features fo

The SSG Landers have been at the top of South Korean baseball all season, and as the second half of the 2022 campaign resumes Friday, they will try to do the unthinkable: going wire to wire to win the pennant. The Landers (57-26-3) have already set a Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) record by spending 86 games and 104 days in first place from the season's start. No club has ever spent an entire season at the top in the league's 41-year history. The Landers, currently riding a six-game

As they enter the midseason break for the 2022 South Korean baseball season, the SSG Landers find themselves exactly where they started the proceedings three months ago: first place. The Landers defeated the Kiwoom Heroes 4-1 on Thursday night to arrive at the All-Star break in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) on a six-game winning streak. At 57-26-3 (wins-losses-ties), they lead the Heroes (54-32-1) by 4.5 games. The Landers have been in first place for 103 days and 86 games since the star

Every defeat stings for baseball teams during a long losing streak, but for the Samsung Lions, their 10th straight "L" from Tuesday night probably hurt more than others. They were three outs away from ending their skid at nine games, with veteran closer Oh Seung-hwan taking the mound in the bottom of the ninth inning against the KT Wiz to protect a 3-2 lead. Just minutes later, the Wiz walked off with a 4-3 victory, courtesy of back-to-back solo home runs by Bae Jung-dae and Anthony Al

The SSG Landers announced Tuesday they have newly acquired left-hander Shawn Morimando, replacing him with injured former big leaguer Ivan Nova in their rotation. The Landers, currently leading the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) at 55-26-3 (wins-losses-ties), signed Morimando at up to US$230,000 for the rest of the season -- with $180,000 in guaranteed salary and a maximum $50,000 up for grabs in incentives. Morimando had been pitching in for the CTBC Brothers in the Chinese Professional Base

Lee Jung-hoo, the hitting machine of an outfielder for the Kiwoom Heroes, was named South Korean baseball's top player for June on Monday. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced Lee won the voting for the Player of the Month award over four other candidates. Lee collected 23 out of 31 votes from the media, and 195,776 out of 364,694 votes from fans. He scored 63.94 in converted voting points, easily beating Park Byung-ho of the KT Wiz (17.12 points). For June, Lee led the KBO with

The Pittsburgh Pirates' South Korean utility player Park Hoy-jun is going back to the minors, barely a month after getting called up for the second time this year. The Pirates optioned Park to Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday (US local time), while reinstating a couple of players from the 10-day injured list. Park made the Opening Day roster in April but was demoted to the minors on April 22. He was called up on May 29 but was sent back down the very next day. The Pirates brought him back u