Major League Baseball has the greatest collection of talent of baseball players and Shin Soo Choo had a breakout week by being named the Bank of America Player of the Week for the American League. He is the first Korean position player to ever receive this honor. Damn!

Thanks to 11 hits in 19 at-bats through six games last week, Choo — considered by many to be one of the more underrated players in baseball, going into the season — is starting to get some recognition.

While the Indians went 4-2, Choo led the Majors with a .579 batting average, 11 RBIs, a 1.211 slugging percentage and a .680 on-base percentage, while his 23 total bases were tied for a big league best. He also added three home runs, five runs scored and three doubles last week.

Many of Choo’s biggest hits came in big moments.

In the eighth inning of Thursday’s game against the Rangers, the 27-year-old from South Korea hit a three-run homer that carried his club to a 3-2 victory. Two days later, he drove in the go-ahead run with an eighth-inning double that led to an Indians win over the White Sox. Then, in the series finale against Chicago on Sunday, Choo hit his second career grand slam — and fourth home run of the season — while driving in five in Cleveland’s 7-4 win.

After the game, Indians manager Manny Acta called Choo, who is batting .350 (14-for-40) this season, “a one-man wrecking crew.”

The Indians (6-6) have now won four straight, and Choo — he of a .300 batting average, 20 homers and 86 RBIs in 2009 — is riding a seven-game hitting streak.

“I feel like I played this way in Spring Training,” Choo, said after Sunday’s game. “I didn’t put pressure on myself [in the spring]. The first three or four games, I put pressure on myself. But I talked to some guys and the hitting coach [Jon Nunnally], and they told me not to worry too much. I’m trying to see the ball and hit the ball.”

Source: MLB.com

Shin Soo-Choo was selected for the Cleveland Indians’  Tribe’s Man of the Year award.  This honor is an individual award that is voted on by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.  Pretty darn good because Shin Soo-Choo is a position player and not a pitcher, where many Asian players are usually slotted for on Major League Baseball teams.  His stats are pretty impressive for just his first year in the big leagues and hopefully he’ll get better.

The BBWAA selected Shin-Soo Choo as the Tribe’s Man of the Year for the consistent production he provided in the Indians lineup. Utility infielder Jamey Carroll, who is now a free agent, was saluted as the Frank Gibbons/Steve Olin Good Guy Award winner.

Choo is a first-time winner of the Man of the Year honor. He batted .300 with 20 homers, 38 doubles and 86 RBIs in his first full big league season.

Asdrubal Cabrera was the runner-up for the award in the BBWAA voting.

Carroll won the Good Guy Award for the leadership he provided in the Tribe clubhouse and his approachability and accessibility with the media, in good times and bad. Travis Hafner and Aaron Laffey were also nominated.

Source: MLB.com

Shin-soo Choo is a major league baseball player a lot of pitchers would rather not face.  As the clean up batter on the Cleveland Indians, he was also a key component on the Korean national baseball team during the World Baseball Classic.  Below is an excerpt from an interview he did with Dong-A Ilbo.

Dong-A: Koreans such as Park Chan-ho, Kim Byung-hyun and Seo Jae-weung succeeded as pitchers in Major League Baseball, but you seem like the first to do so as a batter. What does it feel like to become a major batter in the majors?

Choo: I’m not satisfied with myself at the moment. I feel like I need to do more to prove such a reputation. This is only my first season as a full-time runner and the season has yet to end. I’m maintaining a good sense of batting but there’s no end in learning when it comes to baseball. I see new techniques coming out every day, and I have to get used to the balls thrown by new pitchers. You simply cannot survive with old techniques. You have to keep working. I tape my batting every day and analyze it to see whether I’m doing anything wrong.

Dong-A: You are the first Korean to be nominated for the Hank Aaron Award. How does that feel?

Choo: It’s nothing. It might be a big deal in Korea, but not in the United States. It’s an honor to be a nominee, but I know I’m not going to be the winner. There are so many other outstanding batters in the majors. Every team gets two to three nominees, so I’m just one of them.

Dong-A: What was your most difficult moment?

Choo: I had the hardest time in 2001 and 2002 when I first came to the United States after graduating high school in Korea. I had problems with communication and I was lonely because I had no friends. I can communicate well now, though my English might not be perfect.

Dong-A: Do you take English lessons?

Choo: I didn’t take any lessons but I learned by talking to other players. I had a dedicated interpreter for the first two years but not anymore.

Dong-A: Are you aware of your popularity among American fans?

Choo: Many American fans seemed to notice me after the second half of last year, when I began to bat well. We have individual mailboxes and mine is full of fan mail usually asking for my autograph. Unfortunately, I cannot reply to all of them.

Dong-A: What advice do you have for Korean players who wish to play in Major League Baseball?

Choo: I played with my Korean teammates in this year’s World Baseball Classic and the national team is one of the world’s best. Baseball itself is not much different between the two countries, but rather a matter of culture and style. It all boils down to how well Korean players can adapt to the style of American baseball, which is different from Korea’s. I might be doing well here in the States, but I might struggle in Korea. Any player who comes to America should be ready to start from scratch. Even if you were the best player in Korea, you have to swallow your pride.

Dong-A: You might still have to serve your mandatory military service as a Korean male. Is the Asian Games next year your last chance to get a draft exemption?

Choo: That’s a very tricky issue I’ve been discussing with the team, but I’ve not received any confirmation. I want to play in the Asian Games but I’d need permission from my current team.

Dong-A: You have a sticker of the Korean national flag on your bat. Why?

Choo: Many Americans do not know about Korea. I want to let them know more about my country. I had the sticker at the end of the bat since it is often captured on camera. These days, many fans come to the stadium with a picture of the flag.

Dong-A: How do you manage your health?

Choo: I try to sleep a lot, at least eight to nine hours a day. I can get rid of fatigue by sleeping. I also eat red ginseng jelly and juice every day. I even eat jelly in games as a snack. I used to sweat a lot, but after eating red ginseng, I began to sweat less and grew less tired.

Dong-A: What is your ultimate goal?

Choo: I first want to do my best in the United States. I want to be remembered as a long-time starter instead of doing well just for a couple of seasons and then disappearing. I still have a long way toward achieving that goal.

Shin Soo-Choo, an outfielder for the Cleveland Indians, was picked as one of the top 100 baseball players today in Major League Baseball, this according to Joe Posnanski of CNN Sports Illustrated.  Joe ranks Shin Soo-Choo as the 68th best baseball player, which beats out Adam Dunn, Todd Helton, All-Star Brandon Inge, Jimmy Rollins, and a whole lot of other players.  Pretty impressive!

Hits with power (13 homers). Is a perfect 13-for-13 in steals. Gets on base (.393 OBP). Has a bazooka for an arm. And his name, Choo, is perfect for shouting at the ballpark.

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.