KT Wiz catcher Park Byung-ho (37) gave Kerin (KT+ Children) a gift of dreams and hope.
Park Byung-ho gave a young fan an unforgettable memory after the SSG Landers game of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on Wednesday.
Park Byung-ho started the game as the fourth outfielder and batted third with runners on first and second in the bottom of the fifth inning when his team trailed 0-1. A hit was needed to tie the game. With a 1-2 pitch count, Byung-ho Park took advantage of a four-seam fastball from opposing starter Roenis Elias for an RBI single.
Hwang Jae-gyun followed with an RBI double to give the team a 3-1 lead. They held on to the lead until the top of the ninth inning to secure the win.
Park Byung-ho’s hit was followed by a remarkable scene. A young fan was cheering for the team by writing a cheer in a sketchbook. The young fan wrote witty phrases like “Park Byung-ho over toys” and “baseball over kindergarten” to energize the team.
The team went to bat for the fan. A team member personally visited his seat and presented him with an autographed ball, fan book, and notebook. It didn’t stop there. Park Byung-ho, who hit a home run with the power of the cheers, also came to the plate. After the game, he presented the team with one of his bats to show his gratitude. 안전놀이터
For Park, it was just a bat, but for the young fan, it was a treasure that he treasured more than anything else.
Shim Yoo-hyun, who received the bat, said, “I always liked Park Byung-ho and cheered for him a lot. It’s so nice to see and hear my favorite player cheer for me. Now that I have a bat, I feel like my mood is going to soar. I dream of being a baseball player, and I want to be a baseball player like Park Byung-ho,” he said with a smile on his face.