“Park Gun-woo thinks about the team and thinks about the juniors…”
NC outfielder Park Geon-woo (33) requested to be replaced on the bench in the last minute of the game against Suwon KT on July 3, but was sent to the second team the next day. It was not for the usual reasons, such as personal or health reasons. Before the July 5 match against Gochuk Kiwoom, Kang Shin-hyun knew that Park was not fully fit, but hinted that he was not in a condition to miss the game.
He wanted to send a clear message that Park’s request for a substitution was a violation of the “one-team spirit.” Park apologized to the team in a meeting with Kang Myung-ho, and returned to the team on July 21 after the All-Star break. In the meantime, his performance at the Busan All-Star Game, where he batted first base and delivered equipment to Kang, the first base coach, with a “90-degree greeting,” became a hot topic.
With that, the Park Geon-woo situation was resolved. Kang was later asked about Park after the Gwangju KIA game was canceled due to rain on March 30. When asked if he noticed a change in the team’s atmosphere after the Park incident, he smiled and said, “I don’t think so. I can’t see the atmosphere of the team inside out. I told the players not to get upset. It’s not anyone’s fault.”
“A player of Park Gun-woo’s caliber should be loved by the fans and respected by the players,” Kang said in Daejeon shortly after Park’s return. He said that there is no individual who is greater than the team, and that he should have a good influence on the baseball world. He’s a six-year, $100 million free agent. It’s an obligation.
Kang said something similar in Gwangju on March 30. “It was an action to give a message. It doesn’t change much because Park Gun-woo came back. We’ll do the same thing. However, I would be grateful if the players accepted him again,” he said.
Since then, Park has been playing hard. In 99 games this season, he hit .360 with 110 hits, nine home runs, 61 RBIs, 55 runs scored, seven doubles, an OPS of .856, and a slugging percentage of .294. As the centerpiece of the NC National Team’s outfield and top lineup, he is living up to his name. On the first day, he also did his part for Daegu Samsung Electronics, going 2-for-5 with two doubles, two RBIs, and one run scored.
However, it seems that Park Gun-woo thanked the players separately. According to the NC PR team, in mid-July, Park personally presented energy gel food worth about 15 million won to the players, saying that he wanted to help them.
If it’s mid-July, it’s eventually around the start of the second half. Park joined the first team after the All-Star Game and trained with them before traveling to Daejeon. This is likely when he thanked the players. Or maybe it was right after the start of the second half.
The exact timing doesn’t matter. What matters is that Park’s sincerity reached the members. According to the club, “I was thinking about how I could help the whole team during a period of declining physical strength, and I decided to share a product that I was personally benefiting from (Aminovital, an amino acid supplement that is known to help reduce muscle fatigue and speed up recovery) with the team. I thought it was more important for the whole team to take the products to help us win the game than for me to take them alone.”메이저놀이터
Junior Hochul Seo was impressed. “I’m so grateful that Park is thinking about the team and thinking about the juniors. It really helped me psychologically to prepare for the game and play on the field.” Park Gun-woo was truly transformed.