Choo Shin-soo “Ask Director Kim Gyeong-moon to pick him up if he can compete.”
When he was playing for MLB, Tanaka showed off his’extreme’ aspect with 9 hits in 20 at-bats.
There is a growing likelihood of a clash between Korean-Japanese baseball pride Choo Shin-soo (39, SSG Landers) and Masahiro Tanaka (33, Rakuten Golden Eagles) at the Tokyo Olympics, who played a big role in the MLB.
The two players who made a comeback to their homeland ahead of this season are burning their will to compete in the Tokyo Olympics side by side.
If the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics, scheduled to start in July this year, are held as scheduled, the two athletes are likely to face off against each other on the Olympic stage.
After joining the SSG team in the professional baseball KBO league on the 11th, Choo Shin-soo announced his willingness to participate in the Tokyo Olympics at a press conference.
He said, “I thought about boarding the national team from the time I decided to return to the KBO league.”
In the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, Choo Shin-soo led the gold medal with a terrifying record of 14 at-bats, 8 hits, 3 home runs and 10 RBIs, and received special benefits for military service.
He was unable to join the national team afterwards due to opposition from his team, but now the situation has changed.
As Choo Shin-soo has expressed his hopes for boarding the national team, if he is selected for the national team, he can compete in the Tokyo Olympics.
Tanaka, who played for the New York Yankees and returned to her parent team Rakuten this year, also revealed her will to participate in the Tokyo Olympics early on.
He was recently listed on the preliminary list of the Japanese baseball team, and will be included in the final entry unless there is a change.
Choo Shin-soo and Tanaka are the leading players representing Korea-Japan baseball.
In 2014, Shin-soo Choo made a cycling hit that was difficult to do once in his life (a hitter hitting singles, doubles, triples, and home runs in one game). I set a record.
He was also selected for his first All-Star debut that year.
He hit 218 home runs in the 16 seasons of the MLB, the most Asian player ever recorded.
Tanaka is also difficult.
He averaged a 3.74 ERA with 78-46 losses for the Yankees from 2014 to last season.
Last year, which was a shortened season of 60 games, it continued its heyday with an average ERA of 3.56 with 3-3 losses.
If Asian national players Choo Shin-soo and Tanaka, who have achieved success in the big leagues, compete at the Tokyo Olympics, it is expected to attract a great deal of attention from baseball fans from both countries.
Choo Shin-soo showed a strong appearance against Tanaka on the big league stage.
We met 23 times in total, hitting 0.450 with 9 hits in 20 at-bats and 3 walks.
There were no home runs, but he hit three doubles and scored one RBI and two points.
He struck out four times.
Meanwhile, the Korean Baseball Commission (KBO) is planning to make a preliminary entry for the Tokyo Olympics next week.
As many people are selected, Choo Shin-soo seems to be able to make a name for himself.
/yunhap news