The second half of the 2024 KBO season will start on Tuesday, with five games on the schedule. On Saturday, the All-Star game saw the Nanum All-Stars defeat the Dream All-Stars 4-2 at Incheon SSG Landers Field, home of the SSG Landers, in Incheon, South Korea.
As the season progresses, here is a look at the top news and notes from the past week in Korea’s highest level of professional baseball.
Doosan Bears Sign SP Keisho Shirakawa
Recently finishing his six-week contract with the SSG Landers, Japanese starting pitcher Keisho Shirakawa will join the Doosan Bears to replace the injured Brandon Waddell in the starting rotation.
As reported in last week’s edition of the latest news in the KBO, a new league rule allows organizations to sign foreign players to six-week contracts if an injured player on the team needs six or more weeks of recovery from injury. On the Landers, Shirakawa replaced Cuban lefty Roenis Elias.
The 23-year-old will replace Waddell, 30, who, thus far in 2024, is 7-4 with a 3.12 ERA and averages nine strikeouts per nine innings. Waddell was removed from his start against the Lions on June 23 with shoulder pain and may require more than six weeks to return from injury, reports Maeil Business Newspaper.
KBO Sets Attendance Record
According to the Korea JoongAng Daily, the KBO surpassed six million spectators before the All-Star break for the first time in league history.
According to a press release by the KBO, 6,057,323 fans attended 418 games between Opening Day on March 23 and the final day of play before the All-Star break this past Thursday.
The all-time attendance record for a KBO season was in 2017, when 8,406,880 people visited a KBO stadium to watch their favorite KBO team.
Hanwha Eagles Hire New Bench and Pitching Coaches
The Hanwha Eagles are ready for the second half of the season but made a few changes to their coaching staff to better prepare for a late-season playoff push.
The Eagles, who sit in ninth place in the KBO, announced Yang Seung-gwan as the team’s new bench coach, and Yang Sang-moon will take over as the pitching coach. Yang Seung-gwan worked as the NC Dinos’ hitting and bench coach from 2013 to 18, and Yang Sang-moon managed the LG Twins from 2014 to 17.
According to the Korea Bizwire, the two new coaches were teammates in college and with the Pacific Dolphins in 1990. They will attempt to help turn around the Eagles’ season, especially Yang Sang-moon, who will try to lead the pitching staff to a lower ERA. The Eagles rank seventh amongst the 10 KBO teams with a 5.08 ERA and are tied for dead last with the KT Wiz with 13 saves.
This Day in Korean Baseball History
On July 8, 2015, the LG Twins defeated the Lotte Giants 1-0 in 11 innings on a walk-off single by shortstop Oh Ji-hwan.
The Giants were held to four hits in the game and had recorded just three through the game’s first 7.2 innings by Twins starting pitcher Lucas Harrell, who struck out 12 on 121 pitches.
Oh was a KBO All-Star in 2010 and is a two-time KBO Golden Glove Award winner in 2022 and 2023.
KBO Standings as of Monday, July 8
Watch KBO games using the global streaming platform SOOP.
Photo Credit: South Korea’s Oh Ji-hwan stands near second base. (Photo by KAZUHIRO FUJIHARA / AFP) (Photo by KAZUHIRO FUJIHARA/AFP via Getty Images)
