As baseball starts go, this was short and sweet for Yang Hyeon-jong of the Texas Rangers. In his first major league start, Yang struck out eight Minnesota Twins in just 3 1/3 innings at Target Field in Minneapolis on Wednesday (local time). The bullpen took over with one out and bases loaded in the bottom fourth and the game tied at 1-1, and reliever John King bailed out the Korean left-hander with a couple of groundouts. The Rangers prevailed 3-1, after scoring twice in the top of the sixth

Kim Kwang-hyun has been a professional pitcher since 2007. He has seen a lot over his career, which began in his native South Korea and has taken him to the majors with the St. Louis Cardinals. So a bizarre fourth inning against the New York Mets at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on Wednesday (local time), an extended frame that included multiple delays and two reviews, did little to faze him. Kim walked away with a no-decision after holding the Mets to a run in four innings on two hits and thre

Five matches of the South Korean professional baseball league scheduled for Tuesday will be canceled in accordance with the nationwide vaccination program for Olympic athletes. The Korean Baseball Organization (KBO) said Friday that out of 154 players on the preliminary squad for the Tokyo Olympics, 116 professional athletes playing in South Korea, including former Major League All-Star outfielder Choo Shin-soo of SSG Landers, will be inoculated Monday. The number accounts for about 40 percen

Toronto Blue Jays' ace pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin has been placed on the 10-day injured list (IL) for the first time since joining the club after suffering a minor right gluteal strain. In an away game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, on Sunday (US time), Ryu left the game in the fourth inning. His club said the pitcher left the mound because of a minor "right glute strain." Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo played down the placement, forecasting Ry

South Korean left-hander Yang Hyeon-jong of the Texas Rangers has made his Major League Baseball debut on the day he joined the team's big league roster. Yang took the mound as a relief pitcher for the first time in a major league game against the Los Angeles Angels at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, on Monday (US time), relieving starter Jordan Lyles, who allowed seven earned runs in 2 2/3 innings. The southpaw made 66 pitches in 4 1/3 innings, giving up two runs on five hits, with one

St. Louis Cardinals' South Korean pitcher Kim Kwang-hyun took a no-decision in his long-awaited season debut. The left-hander started the game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Saturday (US time), giving up three earned runs on five hits and one walk in three innings. It was his belated first start as the sophomore southpaw began the 2021 season on the injured list due to a back injury after making some rough starts during spring training. On Saturday,

When he's on top of his game, few pitchers in baseball can be as effective and beguiling as Ryu Hyun-jin. The Toronto Blue Jays' ace put on a pitching clinic in picking up his first win of the season against the New York Yankees at TD Ballpark in Dunedin, Florida, on Tuesday (local time). Ryu gave up a run -- unearned -- in 6 2/3 innings against his old nemesis, keeping them off balance all game, with an array of well-located fastballs setting up excellent secondary pitches. The left-hander, n

Three starts into the 2021 season, Ryu Hyun-jin finally has a win for the Toronto Blue Jays. The South Korean left-hander limited the New York Yankees to a run on four hits in 6 2/3 strong innings, helping the Jays to a 7-3 victory at TD Ballpark in Dunedin, Florida, on Tuesday (local time). He struck out seven and walked one. The lone Yankees run off Ryu was unearned, as it came following a throwing error by third baseman Cavan Biggio in the seventh inning. Ryu is now 1-1 for the season and

St. Louis Cardinals' South Korean pitcher Kim Kwang-hyun will make his long-awaited 2021 season debut on the weekend. The left-hander will face the Philadelphia Phillies on the road on Saturday (local time), St. Louis manager Mike Shildt announced prior to Tuesday's home game against the Washington Nationals. The first pitch will be 4:05 p.m. Saturday in Philadelphia, and 5:05 a.m. Sunday in South Korea. Kim missed a couple of weeks in March with back tightness, after some rough starts to his

After hitting 218 home runs over 16 years in the majors, Choo Shin-soo has now homered for the first time in South Korea. The new outfielders for the SSG Landers launched a solo home run off Hanwha Eagles' starter Nick Kingham in the bottom of the third inning of their Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) regular season game on Thursday. The no-doubter traveled 115 meters into right field seats at Incheon SSG Landers Field in Incheon, 40 kilometers west of Seoul. That one swing took care of a lot

It was a day of firsts for the San Diego Padres' South Korean infielder Kim Ha-seong. In his first major league start against the Arizona Diamondbacks in San Diego on Saturday (local time), Kim also picked up his first hit and RBI. He ended the game 2-for-4 with an RBI and a strikeout. The Padres prevailed 7-0. Kim got the start at second base and batted sixth at Petco Park. Kim had come off the bench on Opening Day on Thursday but struck out swinging. He sat out the next game before getting

Samsung Lions' skipper Huh Sam-young is managing his second Opening Day in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) on Saturday, but it feels like the first one to him. In 2020, the coronavirus pandemic caused multiple delays to the start of the season. It had been scheduled to start on March 28, and the league eventually decided on May 5. By the time that first day rolled around, it was too anticlimactic for Huh. This year, things are at least starting on time. Four of the five games scheduled w

Choo Shin-soo has waited his whole life to make his debut in South Korean professional baseball. So what's another day? Choo, the 38-year-old former major leaguer now with the South Korean club SSG Landers, was scheduled to play in his first Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) regular season game on Saturday. But the Landers' game against the Lotte Giants at Incheon SSG Landers Field in Incheon, 40 kilometers west of Seoul, was rained out, along with three of four other games: the Kia Tigers vers

To a man, South Korean baseball players who had previously only seen Choo Shin-soo in action in the majors say they're honored to now be in the same league with the veteran. Following 16 years in the bigs, Choo signed with the SSG Landers of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) in February. Before the ink on his one-year, 2.7 billion won ($2.4 million) contract was dry, Choo became the face of his new team and the most compelling name to watch this season. In the virtual preseason media day

As he prepares to make his third straight Opening Day start this week, Toronto Blue Jays' left-hander Ryu Hyun-jin has adopted big picture thinking. The South Korean ace will be on the mound at Yankee Stadium to face the New York Yankees -- at 1:05 p.m. Thursday (local time), or 2:05 a.m. Friday in Seoul. He also started the first day of last season for the Blue Jays and had the honor for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2019. While Opening Day assignments for starting pitchers carry certain symboli