Only .400 hitter in Korean baseball history in critical condition

Former Korea Baseball Organization player and manager Baek In-chun speaks during an annual awards ceremony hosted by the Korea Pro Baseball Players Alumni Association in Seoul, in this 2019 photo. Yonhap

Baek In-chun, the only player to bat .400 in a South Korean professional baseball season, fell into critical condition Friday due to worsening symptoms of a cerebral infarction, officials said.

According to the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), Baek was found in cardiac arrest early Friday in his home in Cheonan, some 90 kilometers south of Seoul, and was transported to a nearby hospital.

Doctors told a friend of Baek's that the former athlete had stopped breathing, prompting the friend and first-aid workers to begin preparations for Baek's funeral and move him to Dankook University Hospital in Cheonan, where Baek had received his regular medical checkups.

At that point, the KBO informed the media that Baek had died at 82 and it was going to honor him by organizing an official funeral for the former star.

However, after arriving at the second hospital, Baek's heart started beating again, and he was connected to a respirator at around 1:20 p.m. in the hospital's emergency room.

The KBO has sent an employee to Dankook University Hospital to monitor Baek's condition, alongside his family and friends.

Baek has suffered four cerebral infarctions in recent years, and those close to Baek said he had undergone his checkup in relatively good condition Thursday.

As player-manager for MBC Chungyong (currently the LG Twins) in the inaugural KBO season in 1982, Baek batted .412. He remains the only player in league history to top the hallowed mark in batting average in a season.

In 2014, the Korea Pro Baseball Players Alumni Association created the "Baek In-chun Award" in the former star's honor to recognize the best high school or college hitter each year.

Following his 23-year playing career in both Japan and South Korea, Baek went on to work as hitting coach and manager in the KBO. He was named Manager of the Year for the Twins in 1990, when he led them to the Korean Series title.