“Major League Baseball has my full respect for doing that.”
Ryu Hyun-jin (Toronto Blue Jays) has always been a “nice guy” off the field. He takes care of those around him, his teammates. He’s a veteran of more than a decade in the major leagues. There are many players who follow him in Toronto. Alec Manoa is a typical ‘Ryu Hyun-jin wannabe’. Anecdotes about Ryu’s care for Manoa have been shared by Canadian media on numerous occasions.
MLB.com reported on Ryu’s (Toronto Blue Jays) upcoming comeback on March 2, highlighting his “extraordinary leadership” once again. Rather than simply being a mentor or coach, it was defined as a Korean “elder brother culture. In the U.S., where Dutch pay is the norm, a senior would never buy a junior a meal or invite them to his home to eat.
But Ryu Hyun-jin is doing the same thing in the major leagues, just as he did with the Hanwha Eagles of the KBO. According to MLB.com, when Manoa was sent down to the Rookie League this summer after struggling, Ryu took care of him during his rehabilitation and recently invited Kim Ha-Sung (San Diego Padres) to his home for a meal during the Padres’ trip to Toronto.
“This is Korean culture, and there is a hierarchy in Korea. He pays for dinner and teaches us something. He’s been through everything you can go through in the major leagues, mentally and physically. It was nice to have dinner with him in Florida and talk to him.”
But he’s not a heavy-handed older brother. Ryu is always jovial. That’s why players feel comfortable hanging out with him. Kevin Gausman said, “He’s a fun character. He’s always joking around with us. He speaks better English than I thought. He’ll take us to Korean barbecue. He likes to show us Korean culture.”
In fact, Kim Ha-seong, who made his KBO debut in 2014, had no contact with Ryu at all. Ryu was already a major leaguer when Kim made his debut. But knowing the Korean brotherhood culture, he has nothing but respect for Ryu. “I admire the way he brings the team together like he did in Korea,” he said.토토사이트
“We’re like a family. The older brothers take the younger players to dinner every night, and they give them energy on the field every day. I admire them for doing that in the major leagues. I hope Hyun-jin can do what they did.”