Today (3rd), when all the lights were turned off and only the flashlights of the spectators' cell phones were flashing, only the mound of Jamsil Stadium in Seoul suddenly turned on.
There, Park Yong-taek, the protagonist of the retirement ceremony, stood alone, leaving numerous great records, such as 2,504 hits, the most in KBO league history, batting average of 30% for 10 consecutive years, and 150 hits for 7 consecutive years.
He, who always boasted an outstanding fashion sense, appeared in a white suit with a black vertical stripe similar to the LG Twins uniform he had worn for 19 years.
As his nickname 'Wolbo Taek', his eyes were already full of tears.
After a while, with the declaration of permanent absence from coach Cha Myung-seok, who appeared in a black suit that contrasted with Park Yong-taek, the '33' jersey number, which dominated the KBO league, officially became the history of the LG club.
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When Park Yong-taek clicked the button he received from the podium, a huge amount of firecrackers exploded, and at the same time, the lights on the 33rd flag fluttering on the left side of the electronic board at Jamsil Stadium began to illuminate.
Park Yong-taek's permanent absence is the third in LG's history, following Kim Yong-su's 41st and Lee Byung-gyu's 9th.
Kim Yong-soo and Lee Byeong-gyu, 'permanent seniors' who visited the stadium soon after, and Choi Jae-ho, the coach of Gangneung High, who recommended baseball in elementary school, delivered a bouquet to him.
Park Yong-taek, a 'talker', left a farewell speech for more than 10 minutes without a script.
He recalled the intense past, saying, "My father, who used to be a basketball player, said, 'When you start playing baseball, your life is baseball.'
On this day, Park Yong-taek started the 'unlimited autograph session' around noon when the sun was shining.
He was enthusiastic about fan service during his active duty, and he maintained his position even in the heat, saying, "This is the only thing I can do for the fans."
Park Yong-taek re-emphasized the importance of fans, the root of professional sports, by saying, "There is no player greater than the team, there is no team greater than the fans, and there is no baseball greater than the fans" in front of a large audience.
Then, he asked, "I hope that my juniors will sincerely engrave what I have said now."
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Those were the words of Park Yong-taek, who shared joy with fans at the moment of glory and bowed his head as a captain in front of angry fans who held a hearing in 2011.
The last thing that Yong-taek Park, who has been on the ground for 19 years from 2002 to 2020, didn't get is the championship ring.
Park Yong-taek never made it to the Korean series stage again after his rookie, runner-up in the 2002 Korean Series.
He said, "I retire without a championship ring, but instead of a championship ring, I retire with your love."
Park Yong-taek, who was holding back tears even as he recalled the story of his parents, the story of playing baseball the hard way, and the time of batting king in 2009, nicknamed 'Job Ryeol-Taek', finally burst into tears as he told the story of his wife, Jin-Young Han.
He joked, "I almost would retire at home." After joking, "Unlike me during difficult times, I want to tell my wife that I love you, who quietly didn't show any signs and that everything would be fine by my side." spilled
(Photo = Yonhap News)