Koo Ja-wook and Lee Yong-chan: "Why, why, why"? Choi Ji-kang and Noh Si-hwan: "Oh, oh, oh"... A different scene when a pitch hits a player; mutual understanding is needed. [Shin Hwa-seop's Sports Inside]

*This content was translated by AI.

# On the 3rd, at Seoul Jamsil Stadium, during the Doosan Bears-Hanwha Eagles game. With the score tied 1-1 in the bottom of the 11th inning of extra innings with no outs and a runner on first base, Hanwha's Noh Si-hwan (26) was hit by a pitch from Doosan pitcher Choi Ji-kang (25) on the left elbow. It was a 147 km/h fastball on the first pitch.

Noh Si-hwan, clutching his elbow and falling to the ground, quickly got up and walked to first base as if nothing had happened. Choi Ji-kang on the mound took off his cap, bowed his head, and conveyed his apology to Noh Si-hwan. In response, Noh Si-hwan waved both hands and said, "Oh, oh, oh," making a gesture indicating he was fine.

With this warm communication between the pitcher who threw the pitch and the batter who was hit, the game proceeded without further incident. It ended in a thrilling 3-3 draw after both teams traded two runs each in the bottom and top of the 11th inning.

# A somewhat different scene also occurred. On May 31, in the 6th inning of the Samsung Lions-Doosan Bears game held at Daegu Samsung Lions Park. Samsung was leading 6-2, but since Doosan had come back from behind with consecutive walk-off home runs in the previous two days (3-7 and 1-6), both teams were in a situation where they could neither relax nor give up.

With one out and no runners on base, Samsung's Koo Ja-wook (33) was hit on the right calf by a 143 km/h fastball from Doosan pitcher Lee Yong-chan (37) on the first pitch. Lee Yong-chan, watching Koo Ja-wook head to first base, made an annoyed expression, saying, "Why, why, why?" Koo Ja-wook, standing at first base, also muttered something and showed signs of discomfort.

The game continued without further incident, and Samsung won 9-4. When players from both teams lined up to greet the fans, Lee Yong-chan and Koo Ja-wook were spotted meeting separately near home plate. Doosan's Yang Eui-ji (39) and Son Ah-seop (38) also watched from the side. After a brief conversation, Koo Ja-wook bowed his head to greet them, while Yang Eui-ji and Lee Yong-chan patted Koo Ja-wook on the shoulder and exchanged handshakes before parting.

Shortly after, Koo Ja-wook, who had given an interview with the media and the honored player, said, "I am quite sensitive due to the injury location. (In the past) I was hit on the calf and had to rest for a month." However, he added, "Still, it is part of the game, so I think I should accept it well. That is when I need to strengthen my mental state. In competition, I believe one must win unconditionally."

# Every time a pitch hits a player, both the batter and the pitcher can feel uncomfortable. The batter is startled due to injury concerns, while the pitcher may protest that it was unintentional and feels wronged.

What is needed in such situations is "yeokjisa-ji" (·thinking from another's perspective). The pitcher should think, "The batter must have been startled. I am sorry," while the batter should think, "The pitcher didn't hit me on purpose; it was just a mistake."

The recent explosive popularity of the KBO League has been significantly contributed to by "clean baseball," a concept emphasized by KBO League President Heo Koo-yeon. It is analyzed that by maintaining a sense of partnership and playing clean and fair games, they have attracted family fans and young women to the ballparks.

In the past, scenes of bench-clearing brawls and fistfights were frequently staged due to intentional hit-by-pitches. However, now it has become a unique culture of the KBO League for the pitcher to apologize immediately after hitting a player with a pitch, and for the batter to accept it, a practice even foreign players are following.

# On March 31, at Daejeon Hanwha Life Ballpark, during the Hanwha Eagles-KT Wiz game, something like this also happened. In the top of the 5th inning, a dangerous situation occurred where Hanwha's Eom Sang-baek (30) threw a pitch that grazed KT's Heo Kyung-min (36)'s helmet.

Heo Kyung-min, with his glasses and helmet knocked off, fell to the ground and could not get up for a while. Eom Sang-baek, who was ejected for a headshot, also approached the batter's box and watched Heo Kyung-min with a surprised and worried expression.

After lying down for about two minutes, Heo Kyung-min fortunately managed to move his body and get up on his own. He then immediately reached out and stroked Eom Sang-baek's arm with his left hand. It looked as if he was comforting him, saying, "I'm fine. Don't worry too much." Even though he was greatly startled himself, he did not forget to show consideration for his junior.

Both Heo Kyung-min and Eom Sang-baek demonstrated "yeokjisa-ji" perfectly. It was undoubtedly a scene that will be remembered by fans for a long time as a pride of the KBO League.

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*This content was translated by AI.