Korean baseball is getting hotter as the regular season is coming to an end and we are preparing for the fall baseball season. Baseball is popular, so it is hard to get tickets. However, there are a lot of people who can’t enjoy baseball beacause they don’t know the baseball rules. Therefore, the Pharos will introduce some baseball rules and some baseball teams.

l, but I can’t because I don't know the rules!

Q. I want to watch baseball, but I can’t because I don't know the rules!

The Pharos will introduce the game of baseball. Baseball is played in 9 innings in total, and each team has 10 players who play on both offense and defense. Each inning has a top and bottom, and the home team has the right of command in the bottom. Commonly, a hitter hits a ball that a pitcher throws, and the hitter can keep running around the bases if he reaches a base before the ball arrives at the base after being thrown by opposing team’s player.

Q. What is a “Home team?”

Each baseball team has its own stadium. The hometown team or home team is a team that is playing in its own stadium. An opposing team playing against a hometeam is called an “away team.” Usually a stadium is the “home” of one team, but Jamsil Baseball Stadium is used by two teams. Therefore, when those two teams are playing each other, they alternate as home and away teams for each series.\

Q. What is a “series?”

In Korean baseball, six games are played in a week except when games are canceled because of the weather. Three games are played with one team among the six games. Therefore, one team plays games with two teams in a week. Three games played with one team are called a “series.” If a team wins two times in a series, that series is called a “winning series,” and if a team loses two times, it is called a “loosing series.” If a team wins all the games in series, then the term “sweep” is used.

Q. I want to know about “fall baseball.”

Fall baseball involves the use of terms such as call “wildcards,” the “playoffs,” “semi final playoffs,” and the “Korean series.” There are 10 teams in Korea and only five teams can go on to fall baseball. The fourth team and fifth team in regular season rankings play as wildcards. The winning team of the wildcards goes on to semi final playoffs and plays against the 3rd ranked team from the regular season.

Q. Let me know what is distinctive about the various baseball stadiums!

First of all, Munhak Baseball Stadium, which is the SK Wyverns’ home stadium, is developing baseball stadium culture among its precious visitors. It has prepared a variety of seats for friends, lovers, and family members to sit together, under the slogan “Go on a picnic at the baseball stadium.” For instance, there are playgrounds for children, a barbecue zone where you can cook and barbecue, and the Green Zone, where you can have a picnic in a tent. In addition, on “Dog Day,” you can watch a baseball game with your pet, and there are events that you can do with your dog. Moreover, there is a lawn at the home of Hanwha Eagles. At the Hanwha Eagles Park Pool Festival, which was held last summer, the lawn was changed into a vacation zone filled with palm trees, hammocks and parasols, so that it also gave baseball fans an interesting experience. Finally, Gocheok Sky Dome, which is the home stadium of the Nexen Heroes, is the first dome stadium in Korea. It opened in 2015, and has the advantage of being able to host games on schedule without being affected by the weather.

Q. Please introduce the unique cheering styles of the fans!

A unique way of cheering for the Lotte Giants is that the Lotte Giants’ fans put orange plastic bags on their heads after the sixth inning. Therefore, after the sixth inning, the stadium turns into an orange wave. Next, when the sun goes down, fans of the Doosan Bears take out their cell phones from their pockets and shake them so they flash in time to the music. This cheering style is seen as a spectacular sight in the darkened stadium, and the Doosan fans are proud of their harmony. In addition, the cheering of the Hanwha Eagles’ fans is also unique. In the bottom of the eighth inning, all the music and speakers are turned off, and the fans start cheering with their own voices, which is a thrilling experience.

Q.What are some events related to professional baseball games?

The Shinhan Bank, which sponsors the 2018 professional baseball season, arranged a variety of time deposits and installment savings programs related to baseball. It is an event that provides prime rate and other interest rate investments depending on the number of members and the performance of the team they support. Moreover, a donation event is also being held in agreement with the Red Cross, which involves giving a certain amount of money for each save that the pitchers make. For example, the top player of the Doosan Bears in June was Kim Jae-hwan and a certain amount was donated in his name. Futhermore, the “first ball” events of celebrities, the patients whom the club supports program, and the “cleaner” event were held along with other events that people can participate in including kissing, beer drinking and staring contests. Last, according to the team’s concept, more events are going to be arranged such as designating Thursdays as “stress free days” for office workers and Fridays as “TGIF” (Thank God It's Friday) days.

Professional baseball teams try to hold various events in order to make the game easy to understand and fun for many people. Therefore, we hope that more people will enjoy baseball and help to further develop Korean professional baseball. We also hope Korea will achieve good results in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics with their interest and support. Why don't Kyonggi University students get interested in baseball, too?

71st Cub Reporter LEE GAEUN antonia0504@naver.com