5 things I loved about my first KBO game

Hello fellow baseball fans.

If you are anything like me – judging by the fact that you are reading this, it’s a safe assumption – you probably stayed up way past your bedtime to watch a bunch of people play baseball on Monday night.

You may or may not have had English broadcasters or any idea who the players or teams really were, but you watched. And so did I. Because? Baseball.

In all the debates about metrics or traditional stats or who is the best or what skills matter most, we all agree that having baseball of any kind is better than not having baseball at all. With that, many of us tuned into the KBO (Korean Baseball Organization) at an unreasonable hour to drink in every pitch and swing.

Here at DNVR, we will be doing our best to break down what we are learning and observing about the league and its players, as well as the connections to your Colorado Rockies, and we’d like to find a team that as a community we can adopt and follow closely.

For a quick primer on why this is all worth your time as a baseball fan, check out this fun piece from Patrick Lyons.

As for now, let’s just jump right in with five top line takeaways from the first game I took in from the KBO.

Pitches in KPH instead of MPH

This first one is basic, obvious, and to be expected as most of the rest of the world uses the far-easier metric system to measure speeds. Still, it is going to take quite the retraining of my brain to recognize that a breaking pitch coming in and displaying “130” on the screen isn’t something out of a sci fi movie.

Seeing every single pitch in triple digits is jarring, but also fun. Doing the quick math is… less so.

It was also interesting to note that the graphic denoting a particularly fastball lit up on a 94 MPH (yes, I did the math) suggesting a lower threshold for who is bringing the heat.

Singing

This is something we’ve discussed before on the DNVR Rockies Podcast and will push until the end of time. American pro sports need more singing.

Even without a crowd, the players and PA system would galvanize whoever was around into a rousing chorus of… something. Somewhere between song and chant, these moments always add to the atmosphere and it was even more interesting to see that it was kept as a part of the game despite the absence of a crowd to sing along with it.

So yes, we have to figure out a way to do this more here.

Guys swinging all out (and sometimes whiffing)

Big. Ugly. Swings.

I love a quality professional at-bat as much as the next guy. I appreciate the time and dedication it takes to tailor a swing to multiple purposes and grinding through every appearance at the plate like each out made could cost your team the game.

But it’s also pretty great to watch hitter after hitter walk up to the plate and just absolutely come unglued three times. Every once in a while, they connect for a majestic home run the likes of which you don’t see often in MLB because guys rarely swing with all their might.

Sure, much of the rest of the time you end up with some weak outs or, even better, a massive whiff that sends shock-waves through the infield.

Watching a guy work on a proper swing, while prudent, isn’t always the most entertaining thing. Watching a dude load up on a curve that hangs over the plate and put his entire body into hitting it as far as he possible can? That will never not be entertaining.

Batflips on Singles

Along the same lines of a league that is a bit more fun in its ambiance, you just have more flair all over the field. Bat flips in this league are just a part of hitting the ball hard and guys are tossing them around on grounders through the infield.

It also doesn’t appear to be in any way about showing up your opponent but rather about adding more kinetic energy to the game. Like with the swings, guys are just flying around out there. A bit uncontrolled at times to be sure but there is just so much fire and urgency to everything taking place.

Graphics stay on screen during commercials

The final thing of note was about the particular broadcast (which was watched on Twitch) that kept the graphics for the game on screen so that anyone just tuning in could easily check the score and inning.

There are so many easy positives that come out of this. It’s convenient for anyone just turning the game on or checking back in. It’s great for anyone who might be channel surfing and not know for sure if the game is even on and would rather not have to keep waiting through commercials. It’s perfect for anyone trying to keep up on multiple games at a time.

I assume there are TV contract reasons why this doesn’t happen in the U.S. and advertisers might not be crazy about it. But seeing this was definitely one of those moments where something I had never considered before instantly became something I’ve always wanted.

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And that is the list for now. There will surely be much more to add to it as we take in more games. Join us as we continue to watch the games and players and make sure your voice is heard about which team you would like to be the official KBO team of DNVR Rockies.