The KBO League as a whole is at the level of Double A. But…” Previously, when asked, “What level is Korean baseball 메이저놀이터
compared to the American minor leagues?”, a major league club scout After thinking about it for a long time, there were many cases where the answer came back, “It doesn’t seem to be at the level of Triple A overall, and it seems to be slightly better than Double A or at that level.” The reason I was worried was because of the uniqueness of the KBO League. One club scout said, “There are a lot of peculiarities.”
The singularity comes from the huge number of levels playing in one basket, the first team. In our first team, there are players who have just graduated from high school and are at the rookie level in terms of the United States. Now, there are single A-class players who have not been in a year, there are players who have enough skills to work in triple-A, and there are some players who can play in the major leagues.
It was the story of the officials that it was difficult to gauge the average level of players of such many levels running at once. Perhaps this vaguely explains why the development of the KBO League was rather slow.
The KBO League officially operates the 1st Division and the Futures League (2nd Division). Roughly speaking, it can be said that Group 1 is organized for grades, and Group 2 is organized for nurturing and adjustment. However, the view from the outside is that the operation of the second group is not common. In order to foster, you have to gather the players to be fostered and let them play, but there are too many players in the 2nd team waiting for the 1st team call-up.
These players need to focus on results to get into the first team. The team also has to wait for these players for first-team performance, so they are given a chance to participate first. It is a structure where it is difficult to get enough opportunities to participate unless the team strategically manages a few promising players. Also, there is an unbalance caused by rookie-level players who have not matured technically or mentally yet playing against single-A or double-A players in the 2nd team. It is a structure that inevitably leads to more experiences of frustration than success.
People who have served as leaders in the United States believe that the league needs to be further subdivided. It means that young players should be provided with a stage where they can freely play regardless of the result. Hanwha coach Carlos Subero, who has experienced the training system in the United States, said, “American baseball encourages people to fail, and even if they fail, the advantage is that they continue to praise and give opportunities. Players also recognize that the process is more important than the result. do,” he said. There is a perception that it will be possible in the current KBO league’s second group.
Head coach Subero said, “I think there will be great progress if the minor league system expands a little more in Korea. They are veteran players who are skilled and know how to deal with young players,” he said. When it did, shouldn’t there be two or three more leagues?” he expressed his conviction.
Lotte coach Larry Sutton, who experienced the Futures League in Korea, also said, “Personally, I think it’s a positive idea. There is a league at a level where only rookie players play in the Major League. there is,” he said.
The ideal is high, but there are certainly practical problems. At one time, the KBO league expanded its roster to the point where teams with more than 100 players appeared. In this case, the rookie team (group 3) could also play. However, in terms of cost reduction, most recent KBO league teams are not in a position to play third-team games. Even if the team is stripped, they are not equipped with an environment where they can play three games a day. Coach Sutton also said, “Financial issues, each team has to think about whether there is a player base that can build a rookie league.”
In the end, more players must be nominated, and there must be unity at the league level to continue even sporadic exchanges, even if it is not an official rookie league. Alliances with universities and amateurs are also ideas to consider. It is not very helpful for players who should be in their prime to sit on the bench in the Futures League. If it is difficult right now, attention is paid to whether a long-term solution can be sought at the league level.