Dongsan High School, Ryu Hyun-jin, and Choi Ji-man are about to be released as the third big leaguer... Gwangju High School is the No. 1 high school student
Dongsan High School, Ryu Hyun-jin, and Choi Ji-man are about to be released as the third big leaguer... Gwangju High School is the No. 1 high school student
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Kim Hye-sung (26) signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Major League Baseball (MLB), and his alma mater, Dongsan, Incheon, is also drawing attention.
Founded in 1945, Dongsan High School is a prestigious Incheon high school baseball team that has won 10 major championships (presidential cup, blue dragon flag, golden lion flag, and phoenix flag). The most famous graduate is Ryu Hyun-jin from the Hanwha Eagles. When he was a junior in 2005, he played as an ace in the 60th Blue Dragon Flag, leading Dongsan High School to victory.토토사이트
Ryu Hyun-jin, who became the best pitcher after joining the KBO League, signed with the Dodgers through posting (closed competitive bidding) in December 2012. He made his big league debut against the San Francisco Giants on April 3, 2013 (Korea time), becoming the first major leaguer from Dongsan High School. Ryu played in the MLB until the 2023 season.
It was Choi Ji-man who took over the baton of the Dongmun Big Leaguer. Having signed with the Seattle Mariners in March 2009 when he was a junior at Dongsan High School, he made his MLB debut as a member of the Los Angeles Angels in 2016 and became the second big leaguer from Dongsan High School. When he was a member of the Tampa Bay Rays in 2020, he became the first Korean fielder to play in the World Series.
When Kim Hye-sung makes his MLB debut in the 2025 season, Dongsan High School will produce his third big leaguer. He considers then-coach Jung Jae-joon, who worked hard not only in defense but also in mental management, as a benefactor. Kim Hye-sung took the podium as the winner of the second baseman's defense award at the KBO Awards held in November last year and thanked coach Jung Jae-joon. Kim Hye-sung, who has a great affection for his alma mater, took the opportunity to honor Dongsan High School.
Gwangju Jeil High School produced the largest number of major leaguers. Seo Jae-eung, Kim Byung-hyun, and Choi Hee-seop (retired) who jointly won the Blue Dragon Open in 1995 took the MLB stage one after another. Kang Jung-ho (retired) took over the line in 2015.
According to MLB's statistics website Baseball Reference, only 215 high schools worldwide have produced more than 10 big leaguers (as of 2024). In Japan, which has more than 4,000 high school baseball teams, the Osaka-based PL academy, which produced four big leaguers (Kuwata Masumi, Matsui Kazuo, Fukudome Kosuke, and Maeda Kenta), holds the highest record in this category. The PL academy closed in 2016. The top-ranked team is Tohoku High School in Miyagi Prefecture, which produced three big leaguers, including Yu Darvish (San Diego Padres).
When a school produced four big leaguers in Korea, which has a relatively small number of high school baseball teams, the New York Times, a leading media outlet, published an article introducing Gwangju Il High School in 2015. When Kim Hye-sung makes his big league debut, Dongsan High School will become the second-largest high school in Korea after Gwangju Il High School.