During the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC) competition, there is a lot of talk about the disciplinary results of players who caused controversy over drinking.
In particular, when the disciplinary details were announced, criticism was pouring in that the cotton bat was a punishment.메이저놀이터
Kim Gwang-hyeon (SSG), Lee Yong-chan (NC), and Jeong Cheol-won (Doosan), who previously participated in the WBC national baseball team, were caught drinking alcohol at an entertainment bar outside their accommodation during the tournament held in Tokyo, Japan in March. was punished by
After deliberation, the KBO Reward and Punishment Committee, based on Article 151 of the KBO Rules, ‘Damaging Dignity’, Kim Gwang-hyun, who visited an entertainment bar twice during the tournament and damaged the dignity of the national team player, was given 80 hours of community service and a penalty of 5 million won, and an entertainment bar once. 40 hours of community service and 3 million won in fines were decided on each of Lee Yong-chan and Jeong Cheol-won, who entered the .
The punishment for suspension of qualification for the national team was omitted. Previously, in the case of the soccer team, four national team players who caused a drinking scandal during the 2007 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup were suspended for one year.
Compared to this, the general opinion is that the punishment imposed by the KBO is a cotton bat.
Kim Gwang-hyun’s annual salary last year was a whopping 8.1 billion won. His annual salary this year is 1 billion won. Lee Yong-chan is also a high-paid person, and Jeong Cheol-won, who won the rookie of the year last year, also entered the billion won annual salary. It is safe to say that fines for them do not in fact cause a great blow.
Of course, the reward and punishment committee also has circumstances.
The penalty for suspension of qualification for the national team, which is often imposed in other sports, is less effective. Kim Gwang-hyun, in his mid-30s, announced his retirement from the national team after this WBC, and Lee Yong-chan, his same age, is also unlikely to wear the Taegeuk mark in the future.
At least, the ban on selection of the national team or suspension of business trips can only take a hit on Jeong Cheol-won. However, it is against the fairness of punishment to impose national team-related discipline only on Jeong Cheol-won.
In addition, the fact that there is no clear punishment regulation regarding the dignity-damaging behavior of the national team players during the call-up period, such as drinking, also made some anticipation of the controversy over the punishment of the cotton bat.
Kim Kwang-hyun, who started the WBC match against Japan. ⓒ Newsis
Let’s put aside the contents of the punishment, which were somewhat unavoidable. What is regrettable is the authority of the Taegeuk mark, which has fallen as soon as it is about to fall.
Korean baseball, which suffered the shock of being knocked out in the first round twice in a row at the WBC in 2013 and 2017, took this tournament as an opportunity to recover its popularity.
National team players who live on the support and love of fans should have a sense of duty as well as responsibility for this WBC.
However, even if it is not the day before the game, the fact that he drank during the national team call-up can suggest how relaxed some players must have been in the tournament.
In particular, as a result of the investigation by the KBO Investigation Committee, Kim Gwang-hyun headed straight to the entertainment bar on the 7th when the athletes arrived in Tokyo. One player cannot represent the entire team, but the disappointment and betrayal felt by the fans is indescribable because Kim Gwang-hyun is a veteran who has gone through all the hardships in the national team.
It is bittersweet that the authority of the Taegeuk mark amid the KBO’s controversy over the punishment of cotton bats is only about 5 million won imposed on high-income earners.