With this year’s MLB free agent market enlivened by international players, Ben Lindbergh talks to three guests about three baseball-rich countries. First, Jeeho Yoo of the Yonhap News Agency joins to discuss the response in South Korea to Jung Hoo Lee 이정후’s signing, Shin-Soo Choo 추신수’s forthcoming retirement, the legendary career of Choi Dong-won, and the ongoing reckoning with bullying in the KBO and Korean culture at large. Then (44:21) Ben talks to NPB historian Rob Fitts about trailblazing Japanese pitchers Eiji Sawamura and Masanori Murakami, and how baseball would be different if Japanese players had entered MLB earlier. Lastly (1:12:02), Ben brings on Sami Khan, co-director of The Last Out, a documentary about three Cuban players who hoped to make the majors, to discuss their harrowing defections and how a talent exodus affected Cuban baseball.
Audio intro: Andy Ellison, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Audio outro: Ian Phillips, “Effectively Wild Theme”
Link to Yoo on Lee
Link to Yoo on Lee 2
Link to Yoo on Lee 3
Link to Yoo on Lee 4
Link to Yoo on Choo
Link to Yoo on Fedde
Link to other Fedde article
Link to Choi Dong-won wiki
Link to Choi Dong-won Award wiki
Link to Yoo on An’s bullying
Link to Yoo on An 2
Link to An scouting report
Link to info on Babcock firing
Link to info on Peters firing
Link to volleyball twins article
Link to K-pop bullies
Link to Mel Hall article
Link to Mel Hall wiki
Link to Rakuten bullying
Link to Stove League EW wiki
Link to stream Stove League
Link to translators EW episode
Link to baseball deadening article
Link to KBO rules changes
Link to Yomiuri baseball cheers
Link to Rob’s website
Link to Rob’s SABR page
Link to Sawamura wiki
Link to Sawamura Award wiki
Link to posting system explainer
Link to EW Episode 1311
Link to EW Episode 1621
Link to EW Episode 1816
Link to Sugar wiki
Link to Ballplayer: Pelotero wiki
Link to Cuba-NPB/KBO article
Link to post on Rodríguez defection
Link to article on Rodríguez FA
Link to article on Arocha
Link to The Last Out trailer
Link to The Last Out website
Link to Q&A with the doc stars
Link to ESPN on Dominguez
Link to article on Cuban baseball decline
Link to ESPN on Cuba and the WBC
Link to wet feet, dry feet wiki
Link to 2018 MLB deal
Link to scuttled MLB deal
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