Sunshine on Sunny!

Kim Sun-woo returned to Korea on Oct. 1st. Upon arrival, however, he went to his home and lay in bed for two weeks due to an aliment. He explained, "From the middle of the season, I began to feel a great pain on my right elbow. But I was traded to Montreal from Boston Red Socks. I thought I had to show them something. A chance comes only once in a blue moon, you know. I had to demonstrate myself to the manager. That`s for the next season. Getting deep into the end of the season, the pain almost killed me. I had to bear it. My spirits put me through the pain."

After joining Montreal, Kim pitched 20 and 1/3 innings during 4 games. But he allowed only two points. His performance was amazing. He recorded one win with 0.89 ERA. When he was a sophomore at Korea University, he dropped out and flied over to the United States. Then, he had gone through all the tough times in the Minor League. After the bitter three years, now he has secured himself a chance to play as a "full time Major Leaguer" next year.

"In the Major League, there still is an intangible discrimination. It`s like a protocol you have to go through. You are an alien from another country. Whenever I felt it, I thought of ability. I always told myself, `You got the ability! Then, nobody could ignore you.`"

One unforgettable episode about Kim is his confrontation with Oka, a Japanese pitcher playing in the ML. When wearing the Red Socks uniform, Kim and Oka even punched each other twice. "Oka intentionally picked up on me first. I couldn`t stand it. It was so humiliating. So I punched him twice. One in the stadium, the other in a hotel. Weirdly, both of us were traded to Montreal together. What a chemical between us!! We just don`t care about each other. We just do what we have to do."

Ever since his arrival, he spent first two months working out and fishing. He first started fishing in the United States as a pastime. Soon, however, it has become more than just a pastime. It is the only solace in his lonely life. He says that, even these days, he finds the joy of life in going fishing to the Han River with his friends.

I asked him a question, "What kind of pitcher do you want yourself to be in the ML?" He replied, "I wanna be a player my team considers indispensable. The number of winning games does not mean anything to me. I just want to be a player cherished by my team."

Kim will leave for the United States early next year to join the spring camp in Orlando. And the 2003 season opens in April. He boasts of fast balls hovering over 150 km. In addition, his curve balls and sliders are dancing into the strike zone. He will make another American dream, following Park Chan-ho (Texas Rangers) and Kim Byung-hyun (Arizona Diamondbacks).

Sang-Soo Kim ssoo@donga.com