[The Spin]The only thing that’s really big about Choi Hee-seop is his ego
Published: 27 May. 2007, 19:29
Choi Hee-seop looks on from the dugout during a game last Friday. Choi has started out slowly in Korea, and a rib injury has kept him out of last five games. [NEWSIS]
And his May 19 debut came after he hadn’t set foot on the diamond for two months.
The Big Choi is listed as day-to-day.
Having already written a column questioning Choi’s work ethic, I am now here to criticize his attitude.
I believe Choi was rushed to the Tigers’ lineup because the struggling team (seventh place before Sunday’s game, which he also missed) wanted a boost at the gate as well as in its won-loss record. No matter how inferior Korean pitchers are to major leaguers, there is no way Choi was ready to face live pitching, especially not after being cut by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (of all teams) in spring training.
He landed in Korea on Friday, May 11, vowing to be ready to play in days. In the news conference upon his arrival, Choi said he didn’t think Korean pitching would be that difficult for him, and that he could have an immediate impact with the Tigers.
I think Choi is lucky the first pitch he faced wasn’t to his head.
Maybe I am just old school, but I would have loved to see Choi being a little more modest and not underestimating Korean baseball so much.
This is not to say Korean pitchers are as good as major leaguers. As an observer of both leagues, I can tell you the majority of No. 1 starters in Korea wouldn’t make the rotation in the majors or even Triple-A.
While the velocity of Koreans’ fastballs might not be up to the level of major leaguers, their breaking pitches would surprise even major league veterans. They did surprise Choi, who, after his first game, said he had trouble hitting sliders and changeups.
He has since admitted he thinks Korean pitching is better than he expected, and that he would need more time to make adjustments.
You think?
Before coming to Korea, Choi hadn’t appeared in a major league game in nearly two years. I understand his pride in having played in the big show, but he has to lose that “I am a former major leaguer, and therefore I can kill Korean pitching” mindset.
This league isn’t better than the majors, but it’s definitely a different league. And Choi is hitting in a different spot, as a cleanup hitter expected to carry the entire offense rather than just one with some pop.
This means pitchers won’t throw him good pitches to hit. They will work the corners with a slew of breaking pitches, and the straight fastballs will be hard to come by.
So Choi has little choice but to study films and make adjustments, all the while putting his four-year major league career behind him.
The late columnist Jim Murray once wrote baseball is a game where the curve is an optical illusion. Well, Choi surely has been fooled so far.
*“The Spin” appears Mondays and Fridays in the JoongAng Daily.
By Yoo Jee-ho Staff Writer [jeeho@joongang.co.kr]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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