[OSEN=이후광 기자] The Korea Professional Baseball Players Association, led by Chairman Kim Hyun-soo (LG Twins), is taking action to prevent a recurrence of the Oh Jae-won incident.
On the afternoon of the 24th, the Korean Professional Baseball Players Association (hereinafter referred to as the Korea Professional Baseball Players’ Association) released a notice sent by Chairman Kim Hyun-soo to all players from the 10 KBO League teams in relation to Oh Jae-won’s proxy prescription for sleeping pills, which has recently been controversial.
According to the KBO (Korea Baseball Organization), Doosan, Oh Jae-won’s former team, reported to the KBO Clean Baseball Center earlier this month that eight of its players had previously prescribed sleeping pills on their behalf and given them to Oh Jae-won.
A Doosan official told OSEN, “After the Oh Jae-won incident broke out, the club itself conducted a full investigation into proxy prescriptions across the first and second teams. We reported what we found out to the KBO Clean Baseball Center in early April in accordance with procedures, and are watching the results of the investigation. “Currently, all measures that the club can take have been completed.” He also added, “The players involved are currently faithfully participating in the police investigation.”
Since 2021, when he was playing active duty, Oh Jae-won has been threatening his juniors and forcing them to prescribe Stilnox tablets, a sleep-inducing drug containing zolpidem. Although the identity of the eight people who voluntarily reported their actions was not disclosed, it was known that Oh Jae-won at the time selected only 1.5 to 2-tier players who had mild personalities and had not yet seen the light of day, and made them commit ‘illegal acts’.
According to a media report, Oh Jae-won forced his juniors to take prescriptions for him for several years and did not hesitate to assault and threaten them. It is known that he constantly forced his juniors to take prescriptions on his behalf via mobile messenger and sent threatening messages such as “I will stab you with a knife (if you do not receive sleeping pills)” and “I will destroy you.” Due to the nature of the baseball world, which has a strong hierarchy, the powerless juniors had no choice but to submit to the threats of Oh Jae-won, who was the ‘winning captain.’
In fact, Doosan player A, who voluntarily reported it, said, “He was a very scary senior. Since he was a senior with a high standing on the team and was a player that the coaches couldn’t take care of, I was worried that my career as a player would be affected if I looked at him for no reason… “He revealed his honest thoughts.
Chairman Kim Hyun-soo said, “The case of proxy prescription for sleeping pills is an inhumane and illegal act of using one’s position as a senior to force a junior to receive a prescription for psychotropic drugs, and retaliating by inflicting physical and mental harm if the employee does not comply with the request. He poured out strong criticism towards Oh Jae-won, saying, “This is something that cannot possibly happen.”
At the same time, he proposed two preventive measures to prevent a second Oh Jae-won incident.
Kim Hyun-soo said, “Currently, in Korean society, it is easy to encounter various forms of illegal activities, and as professional athletes, we can be more easily exposed to these things.” He added, “If you are exposed to temptation, please think of your beloved family and colleagues. In an instant, the career you have built and your dreams can come crashing down. We know very well that personal deviance is not something that happens alone. I hope you will think of your beloved family and colleagues and resist temptation. If you find it difficult to overcome it on your own, don’t worry and actively ask for help from those around you. “The Players Association will do our best to help,” he promised.
The second option was to use the players’ association’s private player grievance handling system. Kim Hyun-soo said, “You should neither make nor accept unacceptable and unreasonable demands from your senior. It may be difficult to refuse an unreasonable request from a senior. If such a request was made, it was clearly the senior’s fault. If you find it difficult to say no in a coercive atmosphere, ask for help from those around you. The Players Association is an organization to protect players. “The association will provide a solution first and help solve the problem,” he explained.
Hyunsoo Kim specifically said, “The Players Association has been operating a player grievance handling system through the player information system since 2022. “It is a private program that no one can see except the athlete who reported it and the secretary general of the association,” he said. “The association also has a system in place to come up with a legal solution through an advisor. He added, “I hope you don’t suffer because of my senior’s verbal and mental assault.”
Kim Hyun-soo said, “It may be difficult to completely change the atmosphere of the players’ team, which has a clear hierarchy, during his term as president of the players’ association, which ends this year. However, we will activate a system that allows affected players to confront unusual and irrational situations. This is not something I can do alone. First of all, seniors must change, and juniors must also actively use the system. “Only then can we eradicate it,” he emphasized.
He continued, “The players’ association will continue to provide guidance to prevent such ridiculous incidents from happening between seniors and juniors through regularly held board of directors and Futures League circuit meetings.” He added, “Currently, the KBO League is sold out every day and many fans I am receiving love and support. In this atmosphere, we are working harder in the league to reward our players with good performances. He left a message saying, “Let’s all work together and develop together to be loved by fans outside of the game, protect our beloved families, and protect our ground.”
[저작권자 @머니투데이, 무단전재 및 재배포 금지]
Tags: Juniors succumbed Jaewons assault threats .. Players Association prevents Jaewon incident find difficult refuse report privately association
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