Tigers' Choi truly cleanup hitter
Kia Tigers’ Choi Hyoung-woo runs bases after hitting a solo home run against SK Wyverns’ pitcher Moon Kwang-eun in the fifth inning at the SK Happy Dream Park in Incheon, Sunday. / Yonhap
Slugger hits tie-breaking 2-run homers, ends team’s losing streak
By Kang Hyun-kyung
When baseball fans here think of a cleanup hitter, they think of a slugger who can make home runs or extra base hits whenever such hits are needed for their team to win.
Kia Tigers outfielder Choi Hyoung-woo, 34, fit the mold exactly on Saturday when his team played against the rising SK Wyverns at the SK Happy Dream Park in the port city of Incheon.
The Tigers-Wyverns showdown was an epic showing of what to expect from a cleanup hitter in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) League and how those who bat cleanup can meet their fans’ expectations.
Choi hit a two-run home run against Wyverns’ relief pitcher Seo Jin-yong in the ninth inning. With this, the two teams were tied 3-3, leading the game to the extra inning.
In the 11th inning when he appeared at bat again, the situation was quite similar to what happened in the ninth inning. His teammate Ahn Chi-yong was at first base after making an infield hit. Choi followed through another Wyverns’ reliever Chei Byung-yong’s fastball, producing the much-needed tie-breaking two-run homer.
Instantly knowing he made it as he watched his ball fall outside the fence of the ballpark, Choi raised both his hands up and ran the bases to reach home plate. As he arrived at the dugout after running all bases, Tigers’ manager Kim Ki-tae saluted the slugger to celebrate Choi’s upset home run.
The Tigers broke the three-game losing-streak and solidified its stalwart No. 1 position among the 10 KBO clubs. So far, the Tigers have won 25 games and lost eight in 38 games.
The Saturday game was the most memorable one for Choi since he joined the Tigers in November last year after signing what was then a record-high 10 billion won four-year contract after he became a free agent. Choi’s contract payment record was broken in January when slugger Lee Dae-ho returned to the KBO League _ Lee signed a 14 billion won contract with the Lotte Giants and became the highest-paid KBO player.
Choi’s rise in the KBO League was a drama. After graduating from Jeonju High School, Choi was drafted by the Lions and debuted in the KBO League in 2002. His performances in the early years were not solid enough to convince Lions’ coaching staff to keep him on the roster. He was eventually let go in 2005.
He finished mandatory military service and returned to the Lions in 2008. He batted. 276 with 19 home runs and 71 RBIs that year and belatedly won the Rookie of the Year Award. In 2011, the slugger led in home runs in the KBO League for the first time. He had spent the most prolific year in 2016 and led the league in batting average, hits and RBIs.
When he played for the Lions between 2008 and 2016, he was one of the key players who helped the club earn the nickname__ the unbeatable Lions. The club won four championships of the best-of-seven Korean Series between 2011 and 2014 in a row and five consecutive wins of the regular seasons from 2011 to 2015.
During the 2017 opening games against the Lions at the Daegu Samsung Lions Park, Choi paid tribute to the Lions’ fans for their unwavering support for him while he played for the Lions.
In the second inning when he first stood at bat as a Tiger, he took off his helmet and bowed to the Lions fans. He said he wanted to express his deepest gratitude to them.
His gesture drew a mixed reaction from the spectators. Some applauded the former Lions’ slugger, while some jeered at him. His remarks during an interview in November after he signed a contract with the Tigers seemed to make some Lions’ fans feel he betrayed them.
Choi said the reason for his departure from the Lions was not all about money. “While playing for the Lions, there were times when I felt I didn’t belong to the team,” he said in an interview with a sports daily. “I think our former teammate Cha Woo-chan also shared such feelings with me when we played for the Lions. (We both felt that way maybe because) we were not from Daegu.”
Pitcher Cha left the Lions last year and is now playing for the Twins as a starter.
Choi’s remarks indicated that there allegedly was a sort of discrimination of players based on region and he and Cha didn’t get the appropriate treatment they deserved. His remarks caused a stir among Lions’ fans.
Choi had several nicknames. The two most famous ones are “Choi Won-bin” and “the spoiler.” His female fans made the former nickname after the namesake actor and they said Choi looks as handsome as the heartthrob Won Bin when he hits home runs. Choi earned the other nickname in 2015 during the Korean Series between the Lions and the Doosan Bears. There were several chances for him to score for the team but each time he missed them and led the Lions to lose the pennant. His batting average during the post-season games was less than .100 with no RBIs.
Choi said he was aware of those nicknames and harbors no bad feelings about the negative nickname because fans made such nicknames because they like him or are interested in him.