LG Twins infielder Kim Yu-min (21) caused a stir by driving under the influence of alcohol. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) banned him from the team for one year. During the inactive period, a player committed a very wrong crime, which suddenly hit the team during the offseason.
LG said on the 20th, “Kim Yu-min was caught by the police for drunk driving around 11:30 p.m. on the 17th. Kim Yu-min reported himself to the club on the 19th, and the club immediately reported it to the KBO Clean Baseball Center after confirming the fact.” LG then bowed its head, saying, “The club will sincerely apologize to the fans regarding this incident, and make more efforts to prevent recurrence and manage the team.”
Following the announcement of LG’s apology, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced the level of disciplinary action. KBO officially announced that “LG Kim Yoo-min, who was caught in the police crackdown on drunk driving, was disqualified for one year.” KBO explained, “Kim Yoo-min was caught in a drunk driving crackdown on the 17th and is subject to a one-year disqualification in accordance with Article 151 of the KBO Covenant on “Dignity Damage Act” as he meets the criteria for revocation of his license.”
Kim Yu-min joined LG as the 67th overall pick in the second round of the seventh round in the 2021 Rookie Draft, and this year marks his fourth year of joining the team. He has yet to make his debut in the first division.
LG recently suffered from measles due to drunk driving. In July, the company terminated its contract with coach Choi Seung-joon, 36, who was arrested as a current criminal after refusing to measure him while driving under the influence of alcohol. Lee Sang-young, a promising pitcher in the second division, was later found guilty of drunk driving on Sept. 14. Lee Sang-young was charged with violating the Road Traffic Act while driving under the influence of alcohol on a road located in Hadaewon-dong, Jungwon-gu, Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. At that time, the team reported Lee Mi-deum, 24, who was with Lee Sang-young, who caused a stir by drunk driving, to KBO Clean Baseball Center after confirming the fact. About three months later, the KBO reward and punishment committee imposed a one-year disqualification on Lee.
“Once again, I deeply feel the responsibility for managing the team,” LG said after Lee Sang-young’s drunk driving. “The team will examine the deficiencies in the training and management of the team, and will do its best to prevent recurrence in the future. I bow my head and apologize to all the fans who love and support professional baseball.” However, another DUI accident has occurred.
Drunk driving is a very serious criminal act that can deprive others of their safety and lives, and is under social criticism. In particular, there is a social atmosphere that is no longer acceptable to players who play in professional baseball recently. According to the KBO League regulations, suspension of 70 games for a suspension of a driver’s license, one-year disqualification for a driver’s license cancellation, five-year disqualification for two or more drunk driving cases, and permanent disqualification for three or more drunk driving cases are imposed. Both Lee Sang-young and Kim Yoo-min were disqualified for one year after the figure corresponding to the cancellation of their licenses came out.
Right now, LG was hit hard during the off-season. LG had finished most of its work this year with the closing ceremony on the 18th. Some of its employees had already left for vacation. Just as they were preparing to celebrate next year’s New Year by reorganizing it during the end of the year, they faced a bad news of drunk driving. Indeed, it was a player’s outrageous behavior during the off-season, which put a damper on the team’s atmosphere. 안전놀이터
Now is the period of inactive activities. Under KBO rules, teams are not allowed to conduct any group training or field training during inactive periods. However, the team is unable to manage players even if it wants to. However, the accident was caused by the player, and all kinds of efforts were made by the front desk staff of the team. What crime have the front desk staff committed after taking a long vacation? In order to nurture these players, the team is not sparing any investment. However, if the team is punished for committing such a crime without any hesitation, the team will not be able to utilize promising players and only end up wasting investment costs. The team is also a victim.
“Of course, prevention education of each club is also important,” a baseball source said in a recent series of cases involving alcohol consumption. However, simple education seems no longer appropriate. The government should provide thorough and thorough brainwashing training related to drunk driving, such as gaslighting (psychological control). Still, even though he is an adult now, he cannot trace his or her location just because he or she is going to an entertainment district. “The team should not apologize only, but also individual players should apologize now. Nowadays, each player has his or her own agency. I don’t know why they hide behind the team whenever an accident occurs. If an individual player is viewed as an individual business owner, the player who causes such accidents would be tarnished by the image of the team. What should the team do more and what should it do? Isn’t the team also a victim sometimes? We should also talk to them from the perspective of the players’ association.”
Meanwhile, LG made an official statement through an apology. “We bow our heads and apologize to the fans,” LG said. “We deeply apologize to the fans regarding the drunk driving of Kim Yoo-min, a member of the LG Twins team.” “Despite the fact that the team has continued to pay special attention and education on social responsibilities and postures as professional baseball players, it is shocking and embarrassing to say about this incident that happened again,” LG said.
LG continued, “The club deeply feels the responsibility for this incident. I will humbly accept any criticism and criticism from the fans,” adding, “We will once again review the shortcomings of our team’s education and management through thorough self-reflection and take strong measures to prevent recurrence in the future. Once again, we deeply apologize to the fans who love and support the professional baseball and the LG Twins.”
