“My dream? The disciples are making their dreams come true.”
The modifier ‘master’ is not unfamiliar.안전놀이터 16 years in office. There are 15 national championship trophies in his arms. He swept all five national competitions, including the Golden Lion Flag, Blue Dragon Flag, Presidential Boat, Phoenix Flag, and Association Janggi (currently Shinsegae E-Mart Boat), as well as the national sports festival. He is by far the best active high school baseball leader. Jeong Yun-jin (51) is the coach of Deoksu High School. Director Jung said, “It is thanks to meeting outstanding students” and “My motto is ‘like’. I think it’s important for a manager to do his best every moment like a manager and a player like a player,” he lowered his stance.
◆ From a player to a coach
I caught a baseball for the first time in elementary school. He played as an infielder through high school. His playing career was not long. He did not receive a nomination from a professional club. The same was true after he fulfilled his military service in the National Army Sports Corps. Director Jeong recalled that time and said, “In fact, I hurt his shoulder a lot while playing baseball. I thought that my limit was this far, and that I was lacking a lot as a player.” It is Jeong Ki-jo who called coach Jeong back to the baseball world. In 1994, he started his leadership career at Deoksu High School, his alma mater.
uniforms again. I repeated myself not to leave any regrets this time. It was in 2007 that he ascended to the command tower. His responsibility was great. Coach Jeong said, “Even if it’s not 100%, I wanted to help the players achieve at least a little what they hoped for.” He also went through trial and error. Director Chung recalled the 2010 presidential boat. Following 2008-2009, they were aiming for three consecutive victories. One point was not enough. After an extra-time match, they ended up as runners-up. “The players did really well. I think I had a strong desire to win with my own hands. Seeing the tearful disciples, I realized that I shouldn’t be greedy.”
◆ Heavy concerns after strong steps
Behind the brilliant report card, there were many worries. Basically, it is a time when the future of players can be swayed. Many children suffer from anxiety. The way of teaching has also changed a lot from before. Sometimes, they exchange sincere conversations like father and son. It is also the reason for emphasizing character and basic skills. Coach Jeong said, “It’s good to become a professional player and get a high salary, but isn’t that everything?” “I saw Ohtani (Shohei) at the 2012 World Youth Championship. Even at a young age, he politely greeted the opposing team. He tells a lot of those stories.”
Because it was such a prominent step, I received a lot of attacks. A typical example is the overuse controversy. It was pointed out that certain players were used more than necessary to achieve good results. Even if I didn’t care, the stress was great. The heartache was also great. Director Jeong said, “I even looked for data. When I compared it to ace pitchers from other schools who had similar results to ours, it was not at all. For some reason, I didn’t use that player much. I don’t understand why you say that,” he said.
◆ Disciples who make Director Jung laugh
Despite difficulties, he has been playing high school baseball for 30 years. There must have been many rewarding moments. Director Jeong took out the faces of his students one by one. I cannot forget the names of baseball players Lee Jeong-ho and Lee Seo-joon. As a high school elite baseball player, he went on to Seoul National University (Physical Education Department) for the first and second time ever. Seoul National University had to compete on an equal footing with regular students because there was no selection for students specializing in sports. Director Jeong said, “I worked really hard. Even though he was doing all the training on the playground, he studied until dawn. He was both salty and proud to watch it from the sidelines. When he heard the news of passing, I cried too,” he said.
It doesn’t matter if it’s not baseball. The appearance of the disciples playing their role in their respective positions is the driving force that makes Director Jung smile. Director Jeong said, “My dream is not grandiose. I just hope that the friends who coached me will have a good mindset, and I hope that they will enter society and do their part.” “I have a disciple who became the CEO of a clothing company. That friend told me about me somewhere. He said that he is running his business based on the diligence and punctuality he learned in high school. I was proud,” he laughed.
◆ Certainly from the root
Baseball is one of the most popular sports events in Korea. In recent years, a ‘crisis’ has been continuously detected. The World Baseball Classic (WBC), which was held in March, was also a stage where we could see the bare face of Korean baseball. I tasted the humiliation of being eliminated in the first round three times in a row. Many experts insist on reorganizing from the root. Director Jung’s thoughts are not different. “Right now, there are about 95 high school teams in Korea. They say there are hundreds of them in Taiwan alone, not to mention the US and Japan. The time to put the hunger spirit first has already passed. For baseball to develop, massive innovation is needed,” he said.
It’s not just infrastructure. It is also a point where perceptions and atmospheres need to be changed. Coach Jeong said, “They say there are no players in Little Baseball. From a parent’s point of view, considering the future of their children, it seems that they have doubts about whether they can play baseball.” “Not only us, but also the government, the KBO, and from baseball seniors to field leaders all need time to put their heads together and think about it. Compared to the past, both hardware and mentally, it has improved greatly. It is important how they are raised,” he added.