SungWoo Lee — the biggest Royals fan in South Korea — returning for World Series

Yahoo! Sports ^ | Oct. 18, 2014 | David Brown

[TigerLikesRooster]

SungWoo Lee — the biggest Royals fan in South Korea — returning for World Series

By David Brown 14 hours ago

Big League Stew

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Royals were a big deal in South Korea, at least for one fan living there, long before they made the World Series.

SungWoo Lee said he's been a Royals fan for 20 years, which any other baseball fan could tell you were lean times for the club until their recent playoff push. Lee saw his first Royals games in person at Kauffman Stadium this season after getting vacation time at work. In the process, Lee became a local curiosity and sensation because of his earnest appreciation and enthusiasm for a team that plays about 6,500 miles from his home.

[chajin]

I think I know a little of how he feels. I’ve been rooting for the Yokohama professional baseball team—originally the Taiyo Whales, now the DeNA Baystars—since the team moved to Yokohama, as I went to high school there. They have pretty much stunk the whole time.

My son’s experiences of Japan were mostly in Kansai, Shikoku, and Kanazawa, so he follows the (Osaka) Hanshin Tigers—and back in the ‘90s when he was growing up, the team would show up in nearby Lakeland, FL, to spring train with the Detroit Tigers, so he got to meet a few of their players back then. Hanshin has its ups and downs, while the Baystars pretty much have downs.

[Gay State Conservative]

A few years ago I was passing through Memphis and decided to stop for a few hours to see Graceland (I'm an Elvis *fan* but not a *fanatic*).On the shuttle bus from the parking area to the house I was sitting next to two Asian guys...one of whom I got to talking to (the other spoke no English).He said they were from South Korea and came to the US *specifically* to see Graceland! I was astounded to say the least.