Yankee’s pitcher Chan Ho Park had a rough first outing with his new team.  The New York media is notorious for pressing and getting their answer but Chan Ho Park made it easy by being honest.  Maybe it’s better to make up something because Korean honesty just doesn’t translate well.

Chan Ho Park is now in Yankee’s spring training but he actually wanted to remain a Philadelphia Phillie.  He made interesting comments on his first day in Yankee’s camp.

Philadelphia Phillies Chan Ho Park has been pitching in the World Series but did you know what fuels his dazzling fastball?  It’s not steroids but good home cooking from his beautiful wife Ri-Hye Park.  Interestingly, she grew up in Japan and didn’t eat much of Korean food.  However, she’s a trained chef having attended the CIA: Culinary Institute of America.

The Philadelphia newspapers have taken an interest in Chan Ho Park with a third article about him and his family this year.  This time it’s about his lovely wife and her cooking.  Mrs. Park had a very affluent upbringing in Japan and she became used to the best restaurants that Tokyo had to offer, but it turned out that she now finds herself cooking Korean comfort food for her family.

She cooks Korean comfort food for him, with a little bit of Japanese and European dishes to round out the menu.

“My husband is very traditional,” Park said. “And he really wanted traditional home cooking, the kind of food his mother makes. This was all new to me.”

“Once I started to learn, my creativity got more expanded, and it went fast. And now I see that Korean food is very interesting, good food, and very healthy, too . . . “

For the full article, go to Philly.com>

What can’t you do with Kimchi?
Kimchi was a hot topic from the introduction of kimchi donuts from Dunkin Donuts to David Chang making kimchi on The Today Show; the same chef who creates kimchi butter for his restaurant. What else can you make with kimchi? Here are our suggestions: kimchi bagels, kimchi hot dogs, and kimchi gravy.

Chan Ho Park Makes His Appearance in the World Series and Gets Sick
Chan Ho Park made his long awaited appearance in the World Series and gave up a run with the only batter he faced. Then he got sick and was apparently unavailable to pitch game 3 because there’s a flu bug running through the Phillies. Hopefully he’ll get out there again.

Can You Make it RAIN?
Asia was abuzz with Rain’s interview on CNN. And to think, he was a backup dancer once. He’s Korea’s Paula Abdul!

The Braless Hanbok
The readers sure loved the new look hanbok from Seoul’s Fashion Week. Who doesn’t like going braless?

Chan Ho Park made his first appearance at the World Series on Thursday night at Yankee stadium, pitching in relief for the Philadelphia Phillies. He was the first relief pitcher that the Phillies called on during this series. Unfortunately, he gave up a single with a man on 3rd base to extend the Yankees lead to 3-1. He’s got stuff so we know he’ll be back making another appearance on the big stage during this series.

We’re starting a new series to capture the key news and moments from the previous week.  So with that quick and clear description, here we go with our very first WEEK IN REVIEW.

Winner of the Week: Chan Ho Park
Chan Ho Park was the first Korean-born player to play in Major League Baseball and now he gets his chance after 16 years to play in his first World Series. If you didn’t know, and we found out quickly from our readers, Byung Hun “Home Run” Kim was the first Korean-born player to reach the World Series. If you remember, he had a habit of giving up home runs in the 9th inning. Let’s hope that Chan Ho Park represents us better.

Christina Kim is Nude and That’s Better Than a Clothed Grace Park
Christina Kim doesn’t look like Honey Lee (Miss Korea) but she is all athlete and she represented the LPGA in ESPN magazine’s body issue. Our staff discovered this week that if you want to drive traffic quickly to a web site, just insert the word “nude.”  Anything naked seems to outperform someone who’s barely naked.  Who would’ve thought that Christina would’ve beaten out Grace Park scantily clad on Maxim?!

Yul Kwon got a(nother) Job!
The guy who has career ADD has a new job. Surprise! Yul Kwon of Survivor fame is now working for the FCC, after having done everything from clerking to reality show contestant. If trends hold true, Yul will change jobs in 2 years.

Don’t RAIN on my Parade!
The RAIN man is starring in Ninja Assassin and he better kick some ass with his big Korean-American male cast. Otw, we ain’t getting more acting gigs in Hollywood for a while.  The movie is coming out on Thanksgiving.

Update:  Nice article about Chan Ho Park in the Philadelphia newspapers about how he’s on top of the world.  Chan Ho Park appeared to be on the downside of his career, not having had a chance to play in a World Series but he finally reached the ultimate game and the dream continues for him.

NO ONE IN the Phillies’ champagne-splashed locker room Wednesday night could have been happier to be dripping with bubbly than Chan Ho Park. Only 2 years ago, it appeared his baseball career was nearing its end. That year, he played in only one game with the Mets before he was sent down to Triple A New Orleans and later released. Houston then picked him up and assigned him to Triple A Round Rock, where he was an abysmal 2-10 with a 6.21 earned run average. On the wrong side of 30 by that point, he seemed to be just about finished.  For the full article at Philly.com, click here>

Pitcher Chan Ho Park of the Philadelphia Phillies became the second Korean player to reach the World Series in baseball. He made history over a decade ago by becoming the first Korean baseball player to ever play in the Major Leagues.  Ironically, the team he beat in the NLCS was the Dodgers; the team that he first played for in baseball.  He played for the Dodgers last year and lost to the Phillies in the playoffs.  Over the winter he was a free agent and at this point in his career, he decided to sign with the Philadelphia Phillies.  And it wasn’t because the Phillies were willing to give him the most money.  His motivations were opportunities to become a starter and a chance to reach the World Series.  Well, he started the season as a starter but he was eventually relegated to the bullpen.  He played a significant part out of the bullpen during the playoffs – coming in at crucial times to keep the lead.  In the end, it was Chan Ho Park spraying the champagne on Wednesday night with the biggest smile on his face. Best of luck to Chan Ho Park and may he become the first Korean to win a World Series!  Go Phillies!

For a set of images that Philly.com archived of Chan Ho Park this past year, click here.

Update: Chan Ho Park was outstanding last night in game 1 of the NLCS playoffs.  He hasn’t played in a month because of a hamstring injury and he was thrown right into the fire in the 7th inning of the Dodgers and Phillies game, when he was asked to get into the game with a man on second and no outs.  He clocked in a fastball as fast as 97mph and got three straight outs, stranding Andre Ethier on second base.  No one scored on his watch.  When he came off the field, he was greeted by his Phillies’  teammates and he indicated that his heart was pounding when he was out there.

With the crowd of 56,000 waving their giveaway towels, Park got Manny Ramirez to ground out to third, struck out Matt Kemp on a fastball clocked at 97 mph and induced an inning-ending groundout from Casey Blake.

“That gun is not right. I’m old,” said Park, 36, who had not pitched since Sept. 16 because of a strained hamstring.

********

Chan Ho Park has been activated for the NLCS baseball playoffs and he may see action against his former team the LA Dodgers.  He’s a middle inning relief pitcher for the defending world champions Philadelphia Phillies.   He was injured during the month of September and after a rehabbing for the past few weeks, he’s being thrust into the heat of the baseball playoffs.

Park said yesterday he felt healthy enough to return to the active roster.

“I’m ready,” said Park, who went 2-2 with a 2.52 ERA in 38 relief appearances during the regular season. “I’d be glad if I had more time to face hitters.”

Park spent the NLDS working out in Clearwater, Fla., where he threw two bullpen sessions.

“From everything that they say and the way that he was throwing the ball in Florida, he’s ready to go,” manager Charlie Manuel said. “He’s ready to pitch. They felt like he is 100 percent.”

Pitcher Chan Ho Park was the first Korean-born Major League Baseball player when he first arrived in 1994 as a pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers.  He’s 36 now and a lot has changed since he first arrived, and one of those things is his attitude towards the Korean fan base.  In this morning’s Philadelphia newspaper, there’s an interesting article about how Chan Ho Park has evolved his relationship with the Korean fans, and how he embraces them so much today.

“To be honest with you, I used to hate it when people would ask for autographs – again and again and again,” says Park, whose English has improved since he began playing in the United States. “Now, I want to meet as many people as I can. Because each person is special. I appreciate it more than I used to. Without the Korean people to support me, I know I would feel lonely and sick.”

Those young and impressionable days were difficult for Chan Ho Park.  It’s a story that many Korean immigrants can relate to who came here to study.  You’ve grown up in South Korea during your youth and then you’re whisked away to a foreign land and you find yourself not able to speak the language and you have to learn a new culture both personally and profesionally.

Unable to communicate with his teammates back then, Park found the adjustment hard. “Living here was like hell back then,” says Park, who added that in those early days he considered quitting and going back home. But he emerged as a fine pitcher for the Dodgers, and he began to better understand the American culture as the years passed, in part due to the help he received from members of Los Angeles’ Korean community. He remembers how they cooked him Korean food and helped him with his English. Says Park, who is now married and has a daughter: “My Korean friends taught me English, and I learned more about the culture from there. That was very helpful.”

What Chan Ho Park did in retrospect was to pave the way for future Korean-born players to enter Major League Baseball.   Someday he’ll look back and reflect on his glorious career, and hopefully he’ll have a  World Series ring with the Philadelphia Phillies.

The mid-summer classic, the Major League Baseball All-Star game, was played last night in St. Louis.  Though there were no Koreans selected to the all-star game, there are a couple in the league that are making significant contributions to their respective teams.  Choo Shin-Soo of the Cleveland Indians is second in batting statistics on his team with a batting avg of .292, 13 home runs and 54 RBIs.  The right fielder also has stolen 13 bases and is the only Major Leaguer who has stolen over 10 bases and hasn’t been thrown out.  He may seem more like a lumbering outfielder, but apparently he’s got good instincts along the base paths.

The first South Korean baseball player to play in the Major Leagues – Chan Ho Park - is still doing it in his 16th season.  He had originally signed to play with the Philadelphia Phillies to be a starter, but a few hiccups early on changed his status to the bullpen.  However, he’s been a stud in that role and the most dependable long-inning arm for the defending world champions.  He’s sure to be a big contributor once the playoffs roll around.