“Play Ball”… Tokyo Dome disaster before the opening of the KBO League , 5 stadiums sold out

despite bad news …
SSG Kim Gwang

-hyun, personal career 150 wins,
Choo Shin-soo’s solo home run… Ahn Woo-jin, who raised ‘celebration’ for juniors

, recorded 12 strikeouts
Doosan coach Lee Seung-yeop, thrilling first win

The 2023 KBO League met various bad news before안전놀이터 it even opened. In the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC), which was said to be aiming to advance to the semifinals or higher, it suffered the loss of being eliminated in the first round of the finals for three consecutive times. The shockwave was even greater as Japan lost 4-13 to Japan, the ‘rival’, and Japan defeated the United States, the home of baseball, to win the championship. Here, Seo Joon-won of Lotte was handed over to trial on charges of forcing sexual exploitation of minors, and even Jang Jung-seok, former head of KIA,’s ‘backward money controversy’ broke out. On the eve of the opening day, the KBO office was seized and searched by prosecutors on charges of corruption related to broadcasting rights by KBO executives. The KBO Clean Baseball Center reported information related to online illegal gambling by a parent team. Criticism and criticism from baseball fans continued as the flaws were severe in terms of skill and morality.

Still, baseball fans didn’t just send criticism. On the 1st, he showed undiminished affection and interest in the opening game of the 2023 KBO League, which was held simultaneously at 5 stadiums across the country. After announcing a sell-out at Incheon SSG Landers Field (23,000 people) where the SSG-KIA match was held, Kiwoom-Hanwha match’s Gocheok Dome (16,000 people), Doosan-Lotte’s Jamsil Stadium (23,750 people), KT – Tickets for LG’s Suwon KT Wiz Park (18,700 people) and Daegu Samsung Lions Park (24,000 people) where Samsung and NC clashed were all sold out.

All stadiums sold out before the opening of the regular season is the first time in 11 years since 2012, when the 8 clubs system was in place, and the first time in the 10 clubs system. The 105,450 spectators who entered that day were also the second-highest number of spectators ever for the opening game, following the 114,021 recorded in the opening game in 2019. Fans who filled the baseball field enjoyed the players’ play with ‘Chicken Beer’ (chicken and beer), which became the symbol of the baseball field in the warm spring weather. The players also responded with a fierce game to the point that there were two games to finish.

Various records were also poured in the process. ‘Defending Champion’ SSG ace Kim Gwang-hyun led the team to a 4-1 victory with a good pitching of 5 innings and 1 run against KIA, and climbed to the height of 150 wins (80 losses) for the fifth time in his personal career. The only pitchers who surpassed 150 wins before Kim Gwang-hyun were Song Jin-woo (210 wins), Jeong Min-cheol (161 wins), Yang Hyeon-jong (159 wins), and Lee Kang-cheol (152 wins). In addition, it was achieved in 327 games, setting the record for the smallest game ever won by 150. The previous least 150 wins were 347 matches for Jeong Min-cheol. Choo Shin-soo celebrated the team’s junior team’s 150th win by hitting the opening home run with a solo shot over the right fence in the first inning.

Along with Kim Gwang-hyun, Kiwoom’s Ahn Woo-jin, who was the only starting pitcher for the opening game of the native country, also showed off 6 scoreless innings’perfect fight’ by eliminating 12 strikeouts with a light speed ball of 159km/h. At the same time as writing a new record for the most strikeouts in one game (previously 11), he also changed the most strikeouts (previously 10) in the opening game of the KBO League. Kiwoom won a 3-2 victory over Hanwha in the 10th inning with an ending hit by Lee Hyeong-jong, a “transfer student”. Lee Hyung-jong’s hit made Hanhwa’s finisher Jang Si-hwan set a ‘disgraceful record’ of 19 consecutive losses.

Head coach Lee Seung-yeop, who took over as Doosan’s command tower this season, defeated Lotte 12-10 and decorated his debut match with a thrilling ending victory thanks to Jose Rojas’ 3 runs in the 11th overtime. Coach Lee said, “It’s better than when I was a player, and it’s harder than when I was a player.” When I was a player, I was really happy when I hit a walk-off home run, but as a manager, that feeling seems to double.”