The inaugural High School vs. College All-Star Game, organized by Hanwha Eagles in collaboration with the Korea Baseball Softball Association (KBSA), came to a successful conclusion with a 6-6 tie after 10 extra innings.
Held at the Hanwha Life Eaglespark in Daejeon on the 6th, the All-Star Game was a sneak peek at the future stars of professional baseball. It also attracted a lot of attention because it was a matchup between high school and college players that had never been seen before.
In fact, the game was expected to be a box office flop, as it was scheduled to be broadcast on Memorial Day by the three major networks. With the game times completely overlapping, there was a lot of concern that it would be a sloppy affair. The stadium was packed with about 1,000 spectators. That’s no small number for a baseball tournament.
There are many reasons why this tournament was such a success. The first and foremost is the fair selection of players. You can’t do that unless you’re a professional team with no vested interest. The heads of the scouting teams of the 10 teams came together to select the best high school and college players. The tense draw between the two teams is the biggest proof that the selection was done right.
The second is the marketing ability of the professional team. The Hanwha Eagles marketing team created a great teaser video, and the stadium management and promotion were next-level. The game was streamed live on the Eagles’ YouTube channel, Eagles TV. Hanwha Eagles hired the team’s legendary commentator Kim Tae-gyun, baseball reporter Lee Jae-guk, and announcer Jung Yong-gum to enhance the quality of the live broadcast. More than 5,000 fans tuned in to watch the game 먹튀검증.
Lastly, we made sure the players were motivated. Hanwha invited not only the team managers of the 10 clubs to the game, but also the managers of Kia and Lotte. Kia head coach Shim Jae-hak, Lotte head coach Sung Min-kyu, and SSG head coach Kim Sung-yong visited the stadium. The presence of so many professional officials is not a big motivation for the players. In addition, various events and awards were held to motivate the players.
The seats were open to fans for free. The Hanwha Eagles also operated some food, beverage, and merchandise outlets for baseball fans.
The preliminary and final rounds of the home run race were held before the start of the game and during cleanup time, allowing fans to see the long-hitting power of the prospects. Bae Kang (Gwangju Ilgo), who qualified for the finals with four home runs in the preliminaries, won the tournament with three home runs in the finals, beating out Kim Sang-hwi (Chung-Ang University), who topped the preliminaries with seven home runs.
The game ended in a tie for both teams. The first tournament MVP was Jeon Damin (Youngdong University), an outfielder on the College All-Star Team, who tied the game in the bottom of the ninth inning with two outs and two runners on base.
Other honorable mentions went to Lee Seung-min of Whimungo, Park Ki-ho of Cheongju and Park Ki-ho of Cheongju, and Park Ji-hwan of Seadoo as the high school pitcher MVP.
Jung Hyun-soo of Songwon University was named the college pitcher MVP and Ko Da-ae of Chung-Ang University was named the college hitter MVP.
The All-Star Game will not end this year. Next year, and the year after that, Hanwha will continue to organize the event.