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September 16, 2008
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Choi, who twice hit 15 homers in a major league season and once hit three in a game, was demoted to the minors for the second time this season. Choi missed a huge chunk of spring training to mysterious headaches. Back pain made him miss nearly two months starting in May, leading to the first demotion, and now his left shoulder is ailing him. That Choi is in the minors isn’t even the biggest part of the news (more on that later). It’s that his usually reserved manager, Cho Bum-hyun, lashed out at Choi for his “unprofessional behavior” in the media.
“Professional ball players should look after themselves,” Cho said. “Other players went to trainers or had treatments on Monday. But Hee-seop didn’t say anything, showed up on Tuesday and then said he was hurt and missed practice. That’s very unprofessional. “And such behavior doesn’t do the team or himself any good,” Cho added. “Hee-seop will have to change.” Change is necessary on the field as well. In the injury-marred 2008 season, Choi hit only .229 with six home runs and 22 runs batted in in 55 games before the latest demotion. He had almost as many strikeouts (41) as hits (43). For his part, Choi said he was willing to play through the injury but the pain became too much to bear. “I couldn’t even lift my arm on Tuesday,” he said. “I wanted to take painkillers and play. “But I don’t want to make excuses: I’ve just been terrible,” Choi continued. “Doctors told me I’d be out for up to four weeks. But I don’t want to end the season like this. I am going to try to get better and play at least one more game in the big leagues.” Cho, who on Tuesday said he “didn’t know if Choi would be back in the big league this year,” retracted a bit the following day. The manager said, “We’ll keep an eye on him. If he can swing the bat properly, we will call him up.” Pains or not, the demotion should have come earlier. If you don’t agree, you haven’t been watching the KBO this season. If the league kept track of player value compared to salaries - Choi is getting 350 million won ($316,400) per season - he would be one of the worst players. Choi has lost the compact, powerful stroke of only a few years ago and he is only 29 years old. How anyone goes from hitting homers off major league pitchers to fanning on stuff thrown by Korean high school graduates is simply mind-boggling. Choi’s downfall shows why baseball is such an unpredictable sport. Whether he has lost his desire - as it has been suspected in this space more than once - only Choi himself knows. It couldn’t have been luck alone that allowed him to hit 40 homers in his major league career. “I am trying to remain positive,” Choi said. “I’ve disappointed a lot of fans and I hope to get an opportunity to redeem myself.” The Tigers are in sixth place, seven games out of the final playoff spot after losing four of their last five. Still, Manager Cho wants his players to compete to the end. “This is obviously a difficult time for everyone,” he said. “But we don’t want to simply give up fighting. Choi Hee-seop will be an integral part of our team next year. I hope he gets his confidence back and comes back stronger next year.” By Yoo Jee-ho Staff Reporter [jeeho@joongang.co.kr] |
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