본문 기사 내용

Baseball, a game loved the world over.
The much-coveted World Baseball Classic (WBC) was held earlier this year. WBC is a popular international baseball tournament where national baseball teams including Korea, Japan and U.S.A. come together to compete in a knock-out tournament. It was Kang Jung-ho, the cleanup hitter of the Nexen Heroes, who hit a two-run home-run to overturn Korea's last first-round match against Chinese Taipei in last March 2013.
The Nexen Heroes, a Korea professional baseball team, had two of its players for the Korean national team at WBC: Kang Jung-ho, the homer hitter, and Sohn Seung-nahk, a quality pitcher. Let's take a closer look at the team.

"Rise higher in the sky to be stars. See and remember the name: Heroes!" Every season, the Nexen Heroes' cheery song seems to resound around the stadium. With their slogan that we are all heroes, the Nexen Heroes are indeed getting stronger each day and in every way, backed by their countless fans' ever-constant support. Seventy six Heroes, who each have their own goals and dreams, are pushing themselves to the limit to do their fans proud with a good performance and thus help professional baseball remain a popular sport in Korea.
The Heroes is an incarnation of the legendary powerful team, the Hyundai Unicorns, which was disbanded after winning KBO championship four times. They were renamed the Nexen Heroes right before the 2010 season. They play their home games at the Mokdong Baseball Stadium in Seoul's Yangcheon-gu.

On October 10, 2012, Yeom Kyeong-yeop was appointed as the new manager of the team. He has publically vowed to build an effective nest from where the players can fully spread their wings.
Was it because Nexen Tire's passion for growth provided the fuel? Last season, the Nexen Heroes, who had remained low in the league rankings, recorded the team's first 8 game winning streak and led, though for a short while, all the KOB teams - the first time they have done so since their foundation. All these were a good return for the Hero fans.

Such glorious moments could not have been made possible were it not for some real heroes of the Heroes. Among them are Kang Jung-ho, Seo Geon-chang and Park Byung-ho, all of whom are Golden Glove winners. Their joy doubled at the awarding ceremony for the Nexen People of the Year hosted by Nexen Tire to mark the good performance of the Heroes' players, which was held on December 26, 2012. At the ceremony, the three Golden Glove winners were awarded a trophy and 5 million KRW each.
"It has been the most unforgettable year of my career," said Park right after he was named the league MVP for the 2012 season. He made his debut with the LG Twins in 2005 and was traded to the Nexen Heroes in 2011. He then exploded in 2012 with over 30 homeruns and 100+ RBIs.

With the goal of becoming one of the league's leaders for the 2013 season, the Nexen Heroes performed their spring training in Arizona, U.S.A. and Okinawa and Nihonham, Japan. Manager Yeom Kyeong-yeop and the player Park Byung-ho took some time out of their training schedule to answer questions.

Last year, the Korean professional baseball league recorded spectator figures of over 7 million - the first time in its history it has gone over the 7 million mark. It also became the most aired sport in the country. Powered by such popularity, the Nexen Heroes will keep growing year after year. This spring will surely see the Heroes and the tires advancing to the next level.

다른 기사 보기

•