Sundays are lazy. That's all there is to it. I take this idea very seriously and lazing around the house all day Sunday doing nothing is one of the greatest things in the world. But because my house is the size of a small shoebox, I need to do my lazing outdoors from time to time. So I figured, where better to spend a lazt afternoon than at the baseball? Four hours of watching sports, intertwined with snacking and napping. Brilliant...
"I did it myyyy wwaaaayyyy..." The unmistakable Frank Sinatra signaled the start of the KBO (Korean Baseball Organisation) match between the mighty Doosan Bears and the visitng Samsung Lions. Twas a beautiful afternoon at Jamsil Stadium with Doosan taking to the field first. Being the home team they were blessed with the majority of supporters, but one of them was not me. I had inadvertantly stumbled into the visitors section, but I liked my shady seat, so switched allegiances on the spot.
Almost instantly Samsung and I were punsihed. Doosan's pitcher quickly dismissed the 3 Samsung batters, and then at their first at-bat (that's baseball lingo for first turn batting), the second Doosan batter smashed the games first home run. Great start. I quickly began dreaming of a 16-15 thriller in favour of Samsung, the winning run being hit at the bottom of the 9th inning.
It didn't quite pan out that way. There were no further additions to the scoreboard until the 4th inning, when Samsung got their act together and tied it up 1-1. It was a timely bit of action as my mind had drifted away from the game, to memories of making the trip down to Bassendean (I think...please correct me readers if I'm wrong) on a balmy summer's evening to watch the Perth Heat in the now defunct ABL (Australian Baseball League). I must have been only 10 or 11, but I remember it being a fun night out. This confused me, as I can't remember a time when I thought baseball wasn't boring.
It didn't take long for Doosan to re-establish their lead. The very next inning, a couple of well-placed hits brought a runner home to give them a 2-1 advantage. This excited the home crowd and brought my attention to the extremely well-choreographed routines employed by supporters to urge their team on. A dude at the front, standing on a platform and flanked by dancing girls, armed only with a whistle andhis own enthusiasm, managed to convert 15,000 strangers whose only common link was a love of the Doosan Bears and those annoying blow-up banging sticks, into one loud, in-time, cheering monster. Samsung had their own cheer team too, but being out-manned 5 to 1 meant they were always going to be in struggletown.
Nevertheless, Samsung managed to regain the lead in the 6th inning with a 3 run effort. They took to the field 4-2 up and feeling good. All except the starting pitcher that is. He was replaced with a fresh pitcher with a fresh arm. Bad move. The relief pitcher sucked and gave up 3 runs of his own and after 6 innings Doosan were up 5-4. Game on at Jamsil Stadium. I still felt that Samsung needed a wildcard to win the game, like Charlie Sheen's character in Major League 1 (I can't remember the actual character's name - the 'Wild Thing' guy) - someone who could come out and do the improbable. Time would tell.
Given that I had no idea of the player's name's, let alone who was batting at the time, I'll never know if the Samsung player who hit the tying run in at the top of the 7th inning was the Korean equivalent of "Wild Thing". But I like to think he was. It was now 5-5 with the home team under pressure. Go you Lions!
The tension was building to a crescendo with neither team being able to add to the score in their next respective at-bats. Then it happenned. It was the bottom of the 8th inning, and Samsung's 2nd relief pitcher, the first having been dismissed immediately after the debacle two innings previous, gave up a line ball drive to deep right field which allowed 2 Doosan runners to touch home plate and give Doosan a 7-5 lead. I was actually on the edge of my seat by this time, and happy to be there. I didn't want those smug Bears to get one over my brave and determined Lions.
But, and I say with whole-hearted honesty I was disappointed, it was not meant to be. Samsung weren't able to tie the game up in the last at-bat at the tope of the 9th inning, which meant that Doosan were the victors this day. The majority of fans went home happy, but not me. I was left to ponder just where it all went wrong for poor old Samsung, who battled manfully but weren't able to keep their heads when it really mattered most. If only real-life baseball games were as pro-underdog as Hollywood baseball movies. Where is Charlie Sheen when you need him?
Ok, time for the Pointless Korean Fact - Baseball was brought to Korean shores in 1905 by American missionaries, and many people believe that the KBO pro-league was formed in 1982 as a way of diverting public attention away from the illegitimacy of the ruling regime at the time led by Chun-Doo hwan.
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