Kang Jung-ho, Oh Seung-hwan to have 19 showdowns in Major League

Suppose a game is in the bottom of the ninth inning, with runners on the first and second bases, and one-point difference in scores. If Oh Seung-hwan (34) of the St. Louis Cardinals plays on the mound, while Kang Jung-ho (29) of the Pittsburgh Pirates takes the batter’s box in the game, whom should Korean baseball fans cheer?

Korean baseball fans will likely suffer from such a "joyful headache" quite a lot this season. As Oh is mostly likely to join the St. Louis Cardinals, Korean Major Leaguers will face off each other more frequently.

Pittsburgh and St. Louis, which both belong to the National League Central Division, will have a total of 19 showdowns with each other this season. Some Korean players have played in the same leagues such as the American League and the National League, but two Korean players have never played in the same division such as the Western, Central and Eastern divisions. The Los Angeles Dodgers with Ryu Hyun-jin belong to the National League Western Division. The Texas Rangers with Choo Shin-soo are a member of the American League Western Division, while the Minnesota Twins with Park Byung-ho and Baltimore with Kim Hyun-soo belong to the American League Central Division and Eastern Division, respectively.

Teams in the National League and the American League will play a total of 162 games including 20 inter-league games, but basically they play more games with teams in the same division than any others.

Both the opening and closing games in which Korean Major Leaguers will face off each other in this season are games in which Oh Seung-hwan of St. Louis and Kang Jung-ho of Pittsburgh will have showdowns. The two players have no choice but to engage in a do-or-die competition to advance to the post season.

The highlights of showdowns between Korean Major Leaguers will happen in July. Duels between Choo Shin-soo and Park Byung-ho, Kang Jung-ho and Oh Seung-hwan, Ryu Hyun-jin and Kim Hyun-soo, and Park Byung-ho and Choo Shin-soo will continue for 10 consecutive days (July 3 – 12). If one seeks to avoid watching re-runs, the fan needs to manage his or her physical condition to be able to stay overnight for the 10 nights. Even reflecting summer time in the U.S., the time differences between Korea and U.S. cities range from 13 hours (Baltimore) to as many as 14 hours (Minnesota).