After all his accomplishments, beloved Shin-Soo Choo, the former Rangers slugger, just wants to say, “Thank you.”
Shin-Soo Choo, now 42, played the waning part of his career with the SSG Landers of the KBO, the Korean Baseball Organization. He played in the MLB before the rise of Asian players. It was him and Ichiro. That was it. They were the two most well-known players, followed by Hideki Matsui, who made his MLB debut two years before him. There were Chan Ho Park and Chien-Ming Wang. Then, Byung-Hyun Kim became the first Asian player to win a World Series. Most Asian players who made waves in MLB were pitchers.
Choo was one of the first-position players, alongside Ichiro, to make a splash. However, he split his time as a DH on many occasions. One could argue that even Hideki Matsui wasn’t a true position player, as he became primarily known as a DH. Relatively, Shin-Soo Choo was known to be an outfielder rather than the distinction of Hideki Matsui as a designated hitter.
From his humble beginnings as the MVP and best pitcher in the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup to his MLB debut nearly two decades ago with the Mariners, his 130-million-dollar contract with the Rangers before the 2014 season, his selection as an All-Star in 2018, and then his final year in the MLB in 2020, he has always maintained a well-composed and focused manner in and out of the field, despite many challenges in his career.
Despite not being the most exceptional outfielder, he managed to endure 16 seasons at the highest level of baseball. Throughout his career, he experienced both highs and lows, particularly in the final seven years in Major League Baseball, a period marked by persistent speculation about his potential trade, as his output fell short of expectations.
But he endured.
Despite the criticism, he quietly made his way to a lifetime MLB batting average of .275 and drove in 782 RBIs while hitting 218 homers. Before Shohei Ohtani surpassed his record, he led all players of Asian descent in career homers. He was truly the first Asian-born player who was quite known to have some pop in his swing.
2020 and His Random Act of Kindness
The year 2020 was rough for everyone. It was especially hard on minor league players who wouldn't have gotten paid due to some technicality. Through his kindness, he provided minor league players in the Texas Rangers organization with a weekly allowance of $1,000 until the matter was resolved, resulting in a total of more than 2 million dollars out of his own pocket. It wasn't the owners, not the league, but a player that did that. That says a lot about Shin-Soo Choo. He just loves baseball. He sacrificed his health, finances, and even his career for the game of "27 up, 27 down." He could have been down 27 times, but he would have gotten up 27 times.
Shin-Soo Choo says, “Thank you.”
I would then reply, “No, Mr. Choo, thank you. Thank you for giving us your all.”
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