'Is he a K-drama lead?': Korean baseball team's handsome interpreter goes viral
KBO employee Baek Deok-yeol / Courtesy of Xsportsnews
The striking looks of an interpreter for Korea’s national baseball team competing at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games became a hot topic on social media.
Taiwanese media outlet China Times reported Thursday on the interpreter’s appearance in an article titled, “‘I Thought He Was a Drama Lead’: Who Is the Man Interpreting for Korea at the Asian Games Who Has Become an Internet Sensation?” The report focused on the looks of the interpreter working with the national team led by manager Ryu Ji-hyun.
“The baseball game between Taiwan and Korea took place on Sept. 21. While the thrilling game itself drew attention, the Korean team’s interpreter unexpectedly caught viewers’ eyes with his exceptionally handsome looks,” the outlet reported.
“Many netizens mistook him for a scene from a Korean drama and took screenshots of the broadcast, asking, ‘Who is that?!’ It turned out that the handsome man was Baek Deok-yeol, a staff member of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO),” it added.
According to China Times, Baek appeared on the broadcast during the first Group B game of the tournament on Sept. 21, when Korea defeated Taiwan 5-0.
“While everyone was caught up in the baseball game, a staff member appeared near the Korean team and drew everyone’s attention,” the outlet reported. “Wearing a uniform and holding a notebook, he had a strikingly handsome profile. He was the interpreter for the Korean team.”
Overseas viewers who spotted Baek during the game began waiting for the broadcast cameras to show him again. The game itself had already taken a back seat.
“Because of his dazzling looks, interest in the game disappeared, and viewers were simply waiting to see when the camera would show him again,” China Times reported. “Ironically, when a team coach blocked the view, netizens joked, ‘Could you move aside? You’re blocking the handsome guy.’”
The outlet added, “The broadcast footage, which looked as though a celebrity were filming a Korean drama, quickly went viral on social media. Many netizens identified the handsome man.”
“He was Baek Deok-yeol, a KBO employee who worked as the manager and interpreter for the Korean national team’s head coach. He was simply an ordinary person with exceptional looks, not a celebrity or model,” the report said.
Meanwhile, Korea opened its Asian Games baseball campaign with a 5-0 victory over Taiwan in the first Group B game, powered by a strong outing from starting pitcher Kwak Bin and a five-run offensive effort.
This article from Xportsnews is adapted by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.