This breaking ball, which suddenly drops vertically in front of a ‘pokeball’ batter, is one of the breaking balls currently used by Lotte Giants pitchers. If you ask Lotte Giants fans to pick one player who comes to mind when you think of ‘pokeball’, nine out of 10 would answer Jo Jung-hoon, the current coach of Masan Yongma High School.
Since the second half of the 2008 season,안전놀이터 when he played as a player, Coach Cho has been constantly rotating the starting rotation and imprinting his presence on the fans. Coach Cho’s final record at the time was 5 wins, 3 losses, and an average ERA of 3.15 with 1 hold. Coach Cho, who left a good impression on the fans, recorded 14 wins the following year and became the KBO league’s most-winner. With his main weapon, the ‘pokeball’, he was fierce, recording 175 strikeouts (2nd in the league). Coach Cho’s winning the most wins remains the record for the last pitcher to win the most wins for the Lotte Giants.
The Lotte Giants, who finished 4th in the regular league that year, met Doosan in the semi-playoffs, and Coach Cho scrambled to the first game held at Jamsil Baseball Stadium, allowing 2 runs in 7 2/3 innings, the Lotte Giants’ semi-playoff victory in 3272 days. contributed to
The Busan Baseball Record reporters also had the most fun watching baseball during their time as coach Royster, so they were both excited and slightly nervous before starting the interview with Coach Joe. This is because Coach Cho was a player he really liked when the Busan Baseball Record reporter was a student. As he is still a player that many Lotte Giants fans miss, this time, questions from reporters were minimized and the interview was conducted with questions fans were curious about.
[Annals of Busan Baseball]
What memories do you have of your life as a player at Lotte Giants?
[Coach Cho Jeong-hoon]
It’s a team I’ve been involved in from the moment I grew up until the end of my baseball career, so it remains an unforgettable time for the rest of my life.
You must have met many leaders through your professional life, but who is the most memorable leader?
[Coach Jo Jeong-hoon]
The coach of my favorite season is the most memorable. Coach Royster and pitching coach Arroyo, who were the coaches at the time, are the most memorable.
[Busan Baseball Record]
If I were to ask many Lotte fans, including myself, to name the most memorable season, I’d say ‘the days of coach Royster’. At the time, you were in charge of one axis as a starting pitcher, how was it at that time?
[Coach Cho Jeong-hoon]
Coach Royster at the time trusted me a lot. And he entrusted me with a lot of matches, so I feel really grateful. Thanks to the coach’s trust, he was able to enjoy baseball itself.
[Busan Baseball Record]
Many Lotte Giants fans still miss Cho Jung-hoon. What kind of impression do Lotte Giants fans have on coach Cho Jeong-hoon?
[Coach Cho Jeong-hoon]
As you all know, there are many people who are really passionate. That’s why I wonder if any baseball player would have been happy at that moment at Sajik Baseball Stadium. (Laughs) It’s the same now and will be in the future, but I think so many players are fans who make baseball games fun and enjoyable.
The Busan Baseball Records is a content created with baseball fans, and it visits baseball-related communities every time to receive questions from fans about the performers. When the appearance of this interview with Coach Joe was confirmed, the reaction of the fans was very hot. This is because about 150 questions and comments were registered in less than an hour. Coach Cho, who was informed of the enthusiastic response from the fans, smiled and told reporters that he wanted to express his gratitude to the fans.
As a pitcher who was famous for his forkball, among the questions from fans, questions about forkball were the most common. A forkball is a ball that is thrown by holding the ball between the index and middle fingers, and refers to a ball that suddenly falls almost vertically in front of the batter. Lotte Giants ace Cho Jung-hoon, who earned great praise from field officials and fans for his best forkball in Korea. He couldn’t answer all of the fans’ questions, but he focused on the ones that mattered most to Coach Joe.
[Annals of Busan Baseball]
In fact, ‘Pokeball’ is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of ‘Cho Jeong-hoon’. It was the coach’s main weapon during his active career, and it is also a breaking ball favored by Lotte Giants pitchers today. How would you compare Lotte players’ forkballs to Coach Cho’s breaking ball?
[Coach Cho Jeong-hoon]
Each player has a different charm. He can only be a little different depending on what kind of movement he makes. But these days, I think these pitchers such as Koo Seung-min, Park Se-woong, and Na Kyun-an are throwing really good balls.
My junior from Yongma High School, Na Gyun-an, is showing a really good look this season. I think you will feel a little different.
[Coach Jo Jeong-Hoon]
I think I’m doing really good pitching after the position change. Since he was a catcher, he must have felt something while receiving the pitcher’s ball during his catcher days. Based on that, he thinks maybe he did a better job developing his pitching side.
[Annals of Busan Baseball]
During his active career, he was so good at forkball that he never thought that his other strengths besides forkball were hidden.
[Coach Cho Jeong-hoon]
I think I just fought with ‘Pokeball’. Because of that one pitch, there were many cases where I benefited from other parts, but the forkball didn’t survive because of other breaking pitches. Rather, thanks to the forkball, other breaking balls were able to see the light, and I think I was able to play an active part on the mound.
[Annals of Busan Baseball]
Currently, there are many pitchers in the KBO League who throw falling pitches such as forkballs and splitters. Is there a pitcher who you think is a really good pitcher?
[Coach Cho Jung-hoon]
When I think about it, Na Kyun-an is also throwing well, and in the case of other teams, good pitchers including Pil Seung-jo in each team throw forkballs once or twice. However, I think the level of throwing a forkball itself has not risen a lot rather than someone evaluating it as okay. After constantly developing and researching to win the game while fighting the batters, I think there are many top-ranked pitchers who throw forkballs now.
Coach Cho’s most memorable game for reporters of the Busan Baseball Records was the game against the Hanwha Eagles on July 27, 2008 at Sajik Baseball Stadium. At that time, a series event was held under the name of Orange Day, and the Sajik Baseball Stadium was full of spectators as usual. At that time, the starting matchup was Cho Jeong-hoon vs. Ryu Hyun-jin, a match many predicted the victory of the Hanwha Eagles. This is because Coach Cho was a player whose skills were not yet in full bloom, and Ryu Hyun-jin was already in the ranks of the best pitchers in Korea. However, on that day, coach Cho Jeong-hoon left an excellent result of 8 innings and 2 runs, and the Lotte Giants batting line exploded and the team won 9-2.
Even though 15 years have passed, it is still the game that remains most deeply in the minds of reporters of the Busan Baseball Records. The fact that a young player standing on the mound and a young student sitting in the stands 15 years ago met through an interview was very emotional. Then, which game is the most memorable for Coach Cho?
[Busan Baseball Record]
What was the most memorable game during his active career?
[Coach Cho Jung-hoon]
I think the game that had the most impact was probably the ‘2009 semi-playoff’. The semi-playoff is a game that many people watch at the end of the season. You watch the semi-playoff games more than the season. I think that match was the most impactful match of my life.
[Busan Baseball Record]
The forkball that the coach threw at the time became famous under the name of the so-called ‘KFC meme’. Have you ever seen that gif?
[Coach Cho Jeong-hoon]
Yes, I’ve seen it on video. It was thrilling. It is really a memory that such a wonderful scene remains as a scene in life, and I am so grateful that many people remember the player ‘Jo Jung-hoon’ because of that scene. And it was so nice to be able to throw a ball like that.
After June 2010, Coach Cho started a long rehabilitation period. Starting in 2010 and ending in 2016, Coach Cho devoted himself to rehabilitation under the single-mindedness of ‘returning to the mound’ for a long time. And on July 9, 2017, in the match against SK Wyverns (now SSG Landers) held at Sajik Baseball Stadium, he was able to step on the mound of Sajik Baseball Stadium again, which he had dreamed of.
[Annals of Busan Baseball]
I spent a long period of rehabilitation after winning the 2009 multi-seungwang award. It must have been a very difficult time, but what was the driving force that allowed you to endure for a long time?
[Coach Cho Jeong-hoon]
I just thought, ‘Let’s play baseball one more time’. Of course, that time was too long, but I think I was able to hold on because I only thought about baseball. To be honest, I thought, ‘Should I give up’ or ‘Is it really impossible?’
[Annals of Busan Baseball]
After hard work, on July 9, 2017, I was able to step on the mound of Sajik Baseball Stadium again. He made a successful return to the mound, striking out two against four batters in one inning. I think the emotions were different.
Although he was no longer seen on the mound in the KBO League after the 2018 season, he is still a player that many fans miss. It is because the impact of coach Cho as a player was very large. Due to the confrontation with Lee Dae-ho, which was recently revealed in JTBC’s ‘Strongest Baseball’, many Lotte Giants fans must have felt a great sense of emotion in their hearts. The Busan Baseball Annals, Cho Jung-hoon, continues next week in Part 2. In the second part, you can check the instructor’s story from ‘Coach Jo Jeong-hoon’, his impressions of appearing in the strongest baseball, and his retirement story.