Suwon KT Wiz Park on the 19th. A special guest came to Oh Seung-hwan (41, Samsung Lions), who was preparing for the KT Wiz match. From iced Americano to caramel macchiato, the person who prepared four different drinks for Oh Seung-hwan’s ‘one and only’ was KT pitcher Park Young-hyun (19)바카라. Park Young-hyun said, “I’m coming to see you because it’s the last game where I’ll meet you this season,” and handed the senior a drink.
The special relationship between the 22-year-old senior and junior is already famous. Park Young-hyun, who had been hoping for Oh Seung-hwan since middle school, had always said that Oh Seung-hwan was his role model even before his debut. In October last year, he first visited the Samsung locker room and requested a meeting with Oh Seung-hwan. Afterwards, Park Young-hyun, who exchanged phone numbers with Oh Seung-hwan, continued their friendship by periodically exchanging text messages, and on this day, he sent a text message to Oh Seung-hwan saying, “I’ll come see you,” and the meeting took place.
Oh Seung-hwan’s first words upon seeing Park Young-hyun were “I’ll be leaving soon.” This was what Park Young-hyun said about participating in the Hangzhou Asian Games (AG) held at the end of September. Oh Seung-hwan said, “Go and win a medal, okay? You don’t have to be sick. He added a word of encouragement, saying, “Eat well and prepare well.”
Park Young-hyun, who has the most holds (32) in the league this season, is likely to serve as the closing pitcher in this AG. He can take his first step toward becoming the national team closer, following in the footsteps of his role model, Oh Seung-hwan, a position he has longed for since before his debut. Prior to that, Park Young-hyun visited a senior member of the national team and asked for advice. The advice of Oh Seung-hwan, a veteran who has worn the Taegeuk symbol eight times since the 2006 World Baseball Classic (WBC), will be of great help to rookies who are just making their national team debut.
Oh Seung-hwan, who smiled and said, “I’m doing well right now, but I have so many questions,” said to Park Young-hyun, “When you go to international competitions, don’t think you’ll learn from someone else, just focus on what you can do. “International competitions are not a place to learn, but a place where you must win at all costs,” he urged. He also said, “The national team players are where the best baseball players in Korea go. Same goes for you. “On the mound, think that your ball is the best and throw it,” he said, encouraging a nervous junior ahead of his first international tournament.