What is the real reason why Ahn Woo-jin (Kiwoom Heroes), the best pitcher in the KBO League in the 2022 season, was eliminated from the World Baseball Classic (WBC) baseball team?
On the 4th, WBC coach Lee Kang-cheol and technical committee chairman Jo Beom-hyun held a press conference and announced the final 30-member list of the national team. The decision to select Ahn Woo-jin, who drew the attention of many people, was ultimately unsuccessful. Chairman Cho Bum-hyeon explained at the meeting, “We selected the final 30 players in consideration of the symbolic meaning, responsibility, and pride of the national team representing the country along with their skills.” Rather than explaining the specific reason, he expressed the meaning that it is difficult to give the Taegeuk mark to Ahn Woo-jin, who has a history of school violence.
KBS N sports commentator Jang Seong-ho, who participated in the WBC national team entry-related meeting as a KBO technical committee member, revealed the reason for Ahn Woo-jin’s elimination through YouTube ‘Yagura’ on the 10th. Commissioner Jang explained, “From the time of player selection during the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games, not only the two players but the entire team were under a lot of stress due to the controversy over military service between Park Hae-min and Oh Ji-hwan.” Lee Kang-chul continued, “If Ahn Woo-jin is selected, the rest of the 29 players can be bombarded with media attention, and if they continue to be bombarded with stories about An Woo-jin, the national team players will also have an impact on their psychology or performance. That’s what the director is worried about,” he said. 메이저놀이터
The 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games baseball team suffered a major measles with the selection of Park Hae-min and Oh Ji-hwan. Kim Hyun-soo, who was the captain of the national team at the time, expressed regret, saying, “Our players haven’t even started yet, but they are getting a lot of criticism.” Amid criticism from public opinion, the national team won the gold medal, but the atmosphere was not welcome, and in the end, coach Seon Dong-yeol appeared as a witness for the government audit and explained the controversy over the player selection.
Given the previous case, the technical committee had to consider many aspects. Public opinion would have been taken into account, but above all, it seems to have taken into account the stress and pressure that the players directly participating in the game will experience. Commissioner Jang explained, “It seems that coach Lee Kang-cheol made a bold decision (excluding Ahn Woo-jin) for the teamwork and team atmosphere of the players.”
Players can be substituted until the final entry is submitted to the WBC Organizing Committee on February 7th. Nonetheless, with Chairman Cho Bum-hyun emphasizing the ‘meaning of the national team’ and coach Lee Kang-cheol valuing the ‘team atmosphere’, it seems that the opportunity will not return to An Woo-jin.