Padres pitchers get a chance to renew old friendships, revisit memories

PEORIA, Ariz. -- For a pair of Padres pitchers to see familiar faces in the visiting dugout at Peoria Sports Complex on Wednesday night was not a complete surprise.

Those recognizable faces belonged to members of Korea's World Baseball Classic team, and Padres pitchers Cha Seung Baek and Jae Kuk Ryu were happy to see players and friends from their past.

"I played with some of them when I was younger, back when I was in high school," said Baek, a native of Pusan, Korea.

Baek and Ryu weren't scheduled to pitch against the Korean team on Wednesday as the Padres stepped out of Cactus League play for an exhibition game here. On Thursday, Korea will face the Los Angeles Dodgers in nearby Glendale.

Korea, which on Monday won Pool A of the World Baseball Classic, will then head to San Diego for the second round, which begins on Sunday.

Ryu, who is hoping to win a job in the San Diego bullpen, is a native of Choon Chung Do, which is located near the capital city of Seoul. Like Baek, he played with a handful of the players who were here on Wednesday.

Last year, Ryu was part of the Korean qualifier team that would later advance to and win the gold medal in the Beijing Olympics.

Ryu, who has played professionally in the United States since 2001, when he signed with the Chicago Cubs, said the improvements in baseball in Korea in the last decade have been remarkable.

"When I first came here, it probably wasn't even Double-A," Ryu said. "Right now, though, I think they've gotten so much better. They have learned a lot about the game from watching the United States and Japan. The sport has grown very fast."

That was evident recently in Pool A play when Korea defeated Japan -- the defending World Baseball Classic champion -- twice.

Baek is a little further removed from his days of playing as an amateur in Korea. Baek was, essentially, Ichiro Suzuki, signing with the Mariners in 1998. His signing marked Seattle's official push into the international market.

Two years later, the Mariners won the rights to sign Ichiro from the Orix Blue Wave of Japan's Pacific League. Baek isn't as familiar with the players who are currently on the Korean roster, but he has watched them enough lately to notice the improvement in the overall play.

"Before, there were a few good players. But now they have a lot of very good players and they have a very good team," Baek said.

Baek and Ryu, who hadn't met before this spring, have quickly become friends. Ryu has quizzed Baek for his knowledge of the Padres and National League teams while Baek has found someone else in the clubhouse with whom he can speak Korean.

"Last year, my first year here, I didn't know anybody. I would just sit here," Baek said of joining with the Padres. "Now, with Jae here, I'm a lot more comfortable and I have someone who I can speak Korean with."

Said Ryu: "It's been really, really great for me. Cha Seung knows everyone here. ... He takes care of me. I'll ask him about this team and that team. That helps a lot."