Chan Ho Park

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This is a Korean name; the family name is Park.

Chan Ho Park

Los Angeles Dodgers — No. 61
Pitcher
Born: June 30, 1973 (1973-06-30) (age 34)
Bats: Right	Throws: Right
Major League Baseball debut
April 8, 1994 for the Los Angeles Dodgers
Selected MLB statistics (through 2007)
Win-Loss	113-88
Earned Run Average	4.40
Strikeouts	1511
Teams
Los Angeles Dodgers (1994-2001, 2008-present) Texas Rangers (2002-2005) San Diego Padres (2005-2006) New York Mets (2007)

Chan Ho Park (born June 30, 1973 in Kongju, South Korea) is a Major League Baseball pitcher who currently pitches for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He is the first Korean-born player in Major League history.^[1]

[edit] Korean baseball career

As a high school player in South Korea, he won team Most Valuable Player honors three consecutive seasons at Kongju High School in Kongju, South Korea. He also was named the MVP at four national prep tournaments.

Park was a member of the 1993 All-South Korean team and the South Korean National Team. He posted a 2.76 ERA in helping South Korea earn a Silver Medal at the Asian Games in 1993. He also pitched in the White Flag College Games Championship in May 1993 and the World University Games om July 1993.

Park was a sophomore at Hanyang University, Seoul in 1994 when he was signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers as an amateur free agent.

[edit] Pro career

[edit] Los Angeles Dodgers

Park made his professional debut for the Dodgers on April 8, 1994 against the Atlanta Braves as a reliever, working one inning.

Park played in one additional game for the Dodgers that season and then spent the bulk of the season with the Class AA San Antonio Missions, finishing with a 5-7 record and a 3.55 era for the Missions in 20 starts with 100 strikeouts.

With the Albuquerque Dukes in 1995 he was fourth in the Pacific Coast League in strikeouts with 101, and averaged 8.26 strikeouts per 9 innings, the top mark among all Class AAA pitchers. He was selected by Baseball America as the 2nd best Dodgers prospect after the season with the best fastball in the PCL. He recorded his first Major League start on October 1 against the San Diego Padres after receiving a September call-up.

In 1996, his first full season with the Dodgers, he went 5-5 with a 3.64 ERA in 48 games (10 starts). He recorded his first win on April 6 against the Chicago Cubs.

Park had a breakout season in 1997 as he became a fulltime starter. He tied for the team lead in victories, while posting a 14-8 record and a 3.38 ERA in 32 appearances, 29 of them starts.

In 1998 he was 15-9 with a 3.71 ERA in 34 starts and struck out 191 batters in 220.2 innings. After the season, he led the South Korean national team to the gold medal in the Asian Games.

On April 23, 1999, he surrendered two grand slams to Fernando Tatis in the same inning. Tatis is the only player ever to have accomplished this feat in Major League history. Park gave up 11 runs in 2/3 innings.

He ranked second in the NL in strikeouts in 2000 with 217 and second in opposing batting average (.214). He finished the season 18-10 with 1 3.27 ERA, the best totals of his career. He also tossed his first career complete game shutout on September 29 against the San Diego Padres.

Park was named the Dodgers opening day starter for the 2001 season and tossed the Dodgers first season opening shutout since 1981. He was 15-11 with a 3.50 ERA during the season and was selected to appear in the 2001 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, where he pitched one inning, allowed one run and was charged with the loss. Park gave up Barry Bonds' record-breaking 71st and 72nd homers on October 5 against the San Francisco Giants.

[edit] Texas Rangers

Park was granted free agency after the season and was signed by the Texas Rangers in December of that year to a five year, $65 million contract, which was one of the largest contracts for a pitcher at that time. However, during his time with the Rangers, he was hampered by injuries and a home stadium that notoriously favors hitters at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. In his first season with the Rangers, Park went 9-8 in 25 starts, with a 5.75 ERA. The following season, he only started seven times due to injuries, going 1-3 with a 7.58 ERA.

[edit] San Diego Padres

On July 29, 2005, he was traded by the Rangers to the San Diego Padres in exchange for Phil Nevin. Padres fans had hoped that Park could repeat his previous success by playing in pitcher-friendly PETCO Park.

Between the 2005 season and the 2006 season, Park represented South Korea in the World Baseball Classic. In the Asia Round games against Taiwan and Japan, Park made appearances as a closing pitcher, shutting out the opposing lineups. He made another appearance as a closer in the semifinal game against Mexico, in which he again shut out his opposing hitters. His performance made San Diego Padres' manager Bruce Bochy believe that Park can be used as an effective reliever as well as a starter. Park started the semifinal game against Japan, in which he shut out the Japanese lineup for five innings. Team Korea won this game, but Park did not get a decision. Park later said that Padres' closing pitcher Trevor Hoffman taught him how to focus in a relief situation. With his shutout performance in 10 innings and three saves, Team Korea finished the World Baseball Classic in the third place and Park was selected to the WBC All-Star team along with his teammate Seung Yeop Lee and Team Korea's captain Jong Beom Lee.

In the 2006 season, he was reunited with his former Texas Rangers teammate and friend Chris Young, who was traded to the Padres in exchange for Akinori Otsuka. Park started the season as a reliever but soon he became a starter. On July 31, he suffered from mysterious intestinal bleeding and was placed on the disabled list. Several of his teammates, including Jake Peavy, Woody Williams, Chris Young, and Alan Embree, offered to donate their blood, but Park graciously refused their offer, as they were vital members of the team. Park accepted blood transfusions, that came, in part, from Jake Peavy's wife Katie and Kelly Calabrese, Padres' team massage therapist. However, Park's recovery did not last long as he suffered from another episode of intestinal bleeding on August 21. He was hospitalized again, this time along with his wife Rie, who was about to deliver their first child.^[2] A very thorough medical examination revealed that Park was suffering from a rare disease called Meckel's diverticulum. Park had a successful surgery and only six days later his wife delivered a healthy baby daughter at the same hospital.^[3]

The San Diego Padres advanced to the post-season and Park joined the post-season roster. On October 3, 2006, Park made his first post-season appearance in Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Saint Louis Cardinals. In the 2006 season, Park had an excellent batting average as a pitcher and was considered for the Silver Slugger Award in the National League pitcher category.

[edit] New York Mets

On February 8, 2007, the Yonhap News and New York Daily News reported that Park had signed a one-year, $3 million contract with the New York Mets and would report to the Mets' spring training facility in Port St. Lucie, Florida to compete for a starting rotation spot. The Mets sent him down to Triple-A New Orleans following his poor spring performance.^[4][5][6] On April 30, 2007, Park was called up from Triple-A New Orleans to start for the injured Orlando Hernández. On May 3, 2007, Chan Ho Park was sent back down to Triple-A New Orleans. He was designated for assignment on June 4, 2007.

[edit] Houston Astros

On June 12, 2007, he signed a minor league deal with the Houston Astros. Astros Manager Phil Garner said "Park will have a few starts at Triple-A Round Rock before the Astros decide whether to call him up." Park compiled a 2-10 record over 15 starts with Round Rock, failing to earn a spot on the Astros' 40-man roster.

[edit] Return to the Dodgers

On November 8, 2007, Park accepted an offer from his original team, the Los Angeles Dodgers, to attend spring training as a non-roster invitee. On November 28, 2007, Park asked to be let go by the Dodgers to play for the Korean team. After pitching with no health issues for the Korean National team, the contract was finalized on December 6, 2007. Despite being considered a long shot for the fifth starter's role, Park pitched fantastically, but was ultimately passed over for right-hander Esteban Loaiza and was eventually reassigned to the minor leagues on March 30, 2008. Faced with the problem of a fatigued and depleted pitching staff three games later, the Dodgers purchased Park's minor league contract on April 2, 2008.^[7] Park is currently being used as a reliever and a spot starter.

On May 17, 2008, Park made his first start as a Dodger since 2001 against Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. He allowed two runs (one earned run) in four innings with no decision. This game turned out to be a historic one as all three Dodgers pitchers who pitched in this game (Park, Hong-Chih Kuo, and Takashi Saito) were Asian pitchers for the first time in the Major League Baseball history. The Dodgers won it 6-3. ^[8]

[edit] Pitching Style

In his prime, Chan Ho was a Power pitcher with a fastball, a hard slider, an 11-5 curveball, and a changeup. After suffering from a back injury in Texas, he learned a two-seam fastball from Orel Hershiser. FOX play by play announcer Matt Vasgersian once said, "You can only see two seamer like that in Playstation 2" about Park's two seam fastball.^[9]

[edit] Family

Park married Ri-hye Park in November 29, 2005 who is a professional chef. Park has one Daughter, Elynne Park (born on August 30, 2006). Park's sister, Seong Kim, is a model for a Korean plus-size clothing line.

[edit] See also

• MLB All-Time Hit Batsmen List

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
• Chan-Ho Park official korean web site