Oh Jae-won (38, former Doosan) baseball commentator posted an apology a day after he made a remark toward “Korean Express” Park Chan-ho (50).
On the 12th, commentator Oh Jae-won said on his personal SNS (social network service), “Hello, I am Oh Jae-won.” I would like to apologize once again to those who have suffered.”
“The original intention of the word (people) was, ‘I also grew up watching Park Chan-ho as an idol. My father and grandfather also cheered while waking up at dawn. Not only the players in the KBO league today, but also the parents of those players. It’s clear that you cheered for Park Chan-ho, because he was a hero at the time. The words of such a big star or great senior would usually resonate hundreds or thousands of times more than the words of someone like me (Oh Jae-won), and there would be many sympathizing with them. So instead of public criticism, It was missing the point of view of what it would have been like if I had called them separately and gave them advice.”
Oh Jae-won said, “Since the camera was turned off, I feel regret that I couldn’t capture it. I heard that it was a simple interview, and that it was on YouTube was something I hadn’t heard from the agency at the time. Of course there was no pay.” I will not avoid criticism, and I will engrave once again deep in my bones that I need to be more careful before I speak.”
On the other hand, Commissioner Oh caused a big wave when the contents of his determination toward Park Chan-ho the previous day (10th) were revealed. Through the ‘Den Magazine’ YouTube channel, Oh Jae-won said, “I hate the Korean Express so much. Now that I’m a normal person, I can talk about it.” But before that, the entire nation woke up at dawn and cheered for him, and it seems that he doesn’t know how grateful he was.”
Continuing, Oh Jae-won said, “(Park Chan-ho) is not one or two players who made a fool while commenting. It seems that he has never taken responsibility for it.” There was no one,” he said.
Park Chan-ho is a living legend representing Korean baseball. As the first generation to enter the major leagues, he brought great hope and joy to the people during the IMF era. He went 124-98 with a 4.36 earned run average in the majors from 1994 to 2010. He won the gold medal for his country at the Asian Games in Bangkok in 1998, and led Korea to third place in the first WBC tournament in 2006 as a closer. Afterwards, he went through the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) stage and returned to his hometown team, the Hanwha Eagles in 2012, played one season and took off his active uniform. The controversy exploded when Oh Jae-won made a sniper remark toward Park Chan-ho.
Oh Jae-won also opened his mouth about Park Chan-ho’s remarks while holding the microphone as a commentator. Park Chan-ho played as a commentator at the Incheon Asian Games in 2014, and when Oh Jae-won entered the bat at the time of the game against Taiwan, he said, “I remember making it difficult for me.” At the time, Park Chan-ho said, “When I was playing for Hanwha, I had a full count match with Jae-Won Oh. Jae-Won Oh kept fouling, and then I had to pay for a ground ball. At that time, Jae-Won Oh kept insisting that he was hit by his feet. In fact, it didn’t hit, but in the end It was recognized as a foul. Oh Jae-won picked out the next ball and went on base with a walk. I was very upset,” he commented. He added, “After the game that day (at the time), I protested to Doosan manager Jin-wook Kim. Jae-won Oh also came and apologized. That’s how the situation ended.”
Oh Jae-won also talked about the attitude a commentator should have. Oh Jae-won said, “Commentary is for a third party. I think the purpose is to convey the exact situation to the listeners when commentating.” It was very unfortunate.” It’s easy to say things like this. Also, words like “When I saw it…” are only what you saw. Due to the feast of such irresponsible words, misunderstandings pile up and it becomes an image. I really hated that. “He also represented the hearts of active players.
Regarding what the commentator needs, he said, “The importance of words, the importance of analysis, and the importance of details. There were a lot of insane people who said, ‘It is natural to criticize that much.’ I wanted to relieve the unfair players’ feelings. Then, a good proposal came and I started (as a commentator).” “When I started as a commentator, there was only one thing: I wanted to convey the feelings of a player. I never imagined that I would be praised by the fans of the LG Twins, who were my enemies. .Now, as a commentator, I am only on the side of the viewers.”
The following is the full text of the position posted by Oh Jae-won on his personal SNS on the 12th.
Hello, this is Jaewon Oh.
He was whipped for a day, and considering those of you who must have been in a bad mood, I think it’s natural.
Once again, I would like to express my apologies to those who may have been disappointed and offended by the word ‘people’.
The original intention of the word was ‘I also grew up seeing Park Chan-ho as an idol. My father and grandfather also supported me while waking up at dawn. It is clear that not only the players in the KBO league right now, but also the parents of those players supported Park Chan-ho. Because at that time he was a hero. The words of such a big star or great senior will usually resonate hundreds or thousands of times more than the words of someone like me (Oh Jae-won), and there will be many people who agree. So, instead of public criticism, what would have happened if they were called separately to give advice?
Since the camera was turned off, it is regrettable that we could not capture it. I heard that it was a simple interview, and that it was on YouTube was something I hadn’t even heard of at the time. There was no pay, of course.
Even so, I will not avoid criticism and reprimand for this incident. And before I speak, I will engrave once again deep in my bones that I must be more careful.