Just to keep the Korean theme going...
Rangers outfielder Shin-Soo Choo last week became the third Korean baseball player to appear in the MLB All Star game (H/T
KBO Reddit), following Chan-Ho Park in 2001 and Byung-Hyun Kim in 2002. Coincidentally both Park and Kim ended up in NPB in 2011 with Park going 1-5 with the Orix Buffaloes while Kim spent the entire season (or whatever portion of it he spent in Japan) with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles' farm team. Here are cards of both players:
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| 2011 Calbee #106 |
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| 2011 BBM 1st Version #146 |
Like Choo both Park and Kim had bypassed the KBO and signed with MLB teams directly. Both of them ended up in the KBO in 2012 with Park joining the Hanwha Eagles and Kim joining the Nexen Heroes. Park retired after 2012 but Kim spent three more seasons playing in Korea - one more with Nexen and two with the Kia Tigers.
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