58 Anniversary Bears Randel Enjoys Baseball, Music
By Jonathan Sanfilippo
Staff Reporter
Seven years ago, Matt Randel wasn't sure what he was going to do with his life.
Though he was only 24 at the time, Randel had just retired from baseball after a brief professional playing career in Japan. He returned to the United States and began searching for answers to questions he had in his mind. What were his plans for the future? How would he earn a living? How would he pursue his interest in music?
``When I went back home (from Japan), I didn't feel right,'' he said. ``So I just kind of took some time. I bought a van for $425 and I built a little bedroom in the back and drove around in the mountains and tried to discover myself.''
After countless hours of soul-searching, Randel eventually came up with a plan.
"I discovered that I could do the music and art I wanted to do and do baseball as a job," he said. "As a pitcher, we have a lot of free time, so I started taking my guitar with me and I spend a lot of time in hotel rooms learning how to play better."
These days, Randel is enjoying a life filled with baseball and music.
As a baseball player, Randel, now 31 years old, is in his fourth season in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) as a starting pitcher for the Doosan Bears. The right-hander has been one of the team's most consistent hurlers, compiling a 49-32 record with a 3.41 ERA during his stint with the club, including a 9-9 mark with 4.48 ERA this season.
Randel's pitching has helped the Bears reach their second straight Korean Series, where they're playing against the SK Wyverns, a team that beat them in the Series last season.
"I love it,'' Randel said of playing for the Bears. ``It's been the highlight of my professional career. It's an unbelievable group of guys, especially this last couple of months. They're really top-notch guys, great group of guys.''
Randel spends much of his spare time playing guitar. He's part of a rock band called Tremors, which often performs at bars and clubs in Seoul.
``We're an original band,'' Randel said. ``We don't do any covers or anything, anything real fancy. We just play kind of straight music, three chords and fast.''
Playing Baseball
As a young child, Randel had no interest in playing baseball.
But his father made him join a youth league when he was 6 and his attitude toward the sport eventually changed.
``My dad signed me up and drug me out to the field and made me do it,'' said Randel, who was born in Portland, Ore., and grew up in Vancouver, Wash. ``It really wasn't something I wanted to do. But I started to enjoy it.''
Randel played baseball at Ridgefield High School in Washington and for two seasons at Lewis-Clark State College, a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) school in Idaho, before he dropped out.
"I started getting in trouble a little bit, joined a band and ended up failing out of school,'' Randel said. ``I started working at Dominos Pizza, and I guess I worked there for almost two years."
Randel got an opportunity to revive his baseball career, though, when he was invited to a tryout in Japan. In 1999, he got a job playing for the Daiei Hawks ― now called the SoftBank Hawks. He spent two years with the Hawks, playing mostly for their lower-tier team.
``It was really a lucky break for me,'' he said. ``I learned a lot.''
Despite enjoying his time with the Hawks, Randel retired from baseball in 2001. He returned to the United States, bought the van and spent the next two years trying to figure out his life.
After realizing he should return to baseball, Randel went back to Japan in 2003 and joined the Yomiuri Giants. He spent two years with the Giants, playing for their first team and lower-teir team during that span.
When his career with the Giants was fizzling out, Randel got another opportunity in 2005, when a former teammate, pitcher Gary Rath, helped him get a job with the Bears.
``Right after the Giants basically decided they didn't want me anymore, I had a buddy I played with in 2003 who played with the Doosan Bears, and he dropped my name and I ended up here,'' Randel said.
In his four seasons with the Bears, Randel has established himself as a reliable starter, while the team has advanced to the Korean Series three times ― in 2005, 2007 and this season.
Randel was the winning pitcher in the Bears' 5-2 victory against the Wyverns in Game 1 of the Korean Series on Sunday. But the Bears, who are seeking their first KBO championship since 2001, were trailing the Wyverns 2-1 after three games in the best-of-seven series.
``There's a little bit more excitement,'' Randel said of pitching in the Korean Series. ``The crowds are a little more involved, the stakes are a little higher. It's a little more fun.''
Interest in Music
Throughout his life, Randel has enjoyed music.
Growing up as the youngest of his parents' five children, Randel learned about a variety of artists from his mother and siblings. He liked Elvis Presley and David Bowie.
But the music that had the biggest impact on Randel's life came when his older brothers introduced him to punk rock bands, such as Black Flag and Bad Religion.
``I really enjoy punk rock,'' he said.
Listening to punk rock helped Randel cope with difficulties he experienced while adjusting to life as a college student.
Playing guitar became a major part of his life, too. After learning the instrument in 1995 ― the year he graduated from high school ― Randel practiced more frequently in college.
``It really became a big part of my life,'' he said. ``I knew I was a decent baseball player, but I was really interested in the band and the music.''
Though Randel didn't experience much success with his college band, he continued to play and was able to join another band, Tremors, in Korea about a year and a half ago.
Randel and the other members of Tremors ― English bass guitarist John Redmond and Canadian drummer Dwayne Robinson ― perform about once a week.
Randel, who's also working on a project to raise money for orphans this Christmas, said he enjoys living in Korea. He intends to continue playing baseball and music here as long as possible.
``I'm a little more comfortable playing baseball in front of a crowd than playing music in front of a crowd,'' Randel said. ``Music is just a hobby for me. I'm going to be a baseball player as long as I can, but I'm going to play music until I die. You can't play baseball that long.''