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Three players grabbed spots into the East Asia Baseball Hall of Fame in 2009. 1B Byung-Tak Wie and SP Junzo Yamanoue were both no-doubters, earning first ballot nods at 97.6% and 97.3%, respectively. DH Jun-Hui Lim joined them on the first ballot, but squeaked by the 66% requirement at 62.9%. RF Makhmud Hakim narrowly missed at 62.9% on his second try. Also above the midway mark was 3B Shigefumi Tsukehara with a 52.4% second ballot.



Closer Seo-Jun Kang was dropped after ten ballots, losing accumulations with a five-year MLB gap in the middle of his 15 year run. He was 1980 Rookie of the Year and 1982 Reliever of the Year with Hamhung, posting 324 EAB saves, 2.76 ERA, 932 innings, 1200 strikeouts, 133 ERA+, and 32.6 WAR.

Counting MLB, Kang had 405 saves. But being just above 300 wasn’t a lock for EAB’s voters and his rate stats had him as far less dominant or tenured than some of the other inductees. Kang debuted at 42.7% in 2000, but slowly dropped down to 12.9% by the end.

Another reliever, Tae-Yeon Lim, had a similar deal with a split career between EAB, MLB, EPB, and BSA. He had no awards though and finished in EAB with 334 saves, 2.72 ERA, 892.1 innings, 998 strikeouts, 128 ERA+, and 19.2 WAR. He had a bit more longevity than Kang, but was even less dominant. Lim peaked at 25.2% in 2001 and ended at 4.8%, but lasted ten years.



Byung-Tak “Penguin” Wie – First Base – Ulsan Swallows – 97.6% First Ballot

Byung-Tak Wie was a 6’1’’, 200 pound left-handed hitting first baseman from Gwangju, South Korea. Wie was both an excellent contact hitter and power hitter. He was also good at avoiding strikeouts and drawing walks. Wie’s strong bat gave him 46 home runs, 33 doubles, and 119 RBI per his 162 game average. He was comically slow and sluggish as a baserunner, with his perceived waddling earning the nickname “Penguin.”

Although he wasn’t going to win any races, Wie did grade out as a reliably steady defender at first base, generating positive value for his career. His durability was solid most of his career, starting 135+ games in all but one of his 13 seasons with Ulsan. Wie was a respected leader and became extremely popular as one of Korea’s finest sluggers.

Wie attended Kyungham University in Changwon and very quickly became the top hitting prospect entering the 1990 EAB Draft. Ulsan picked him with the #1 overall pick and made him a starter immediately. Wie debuted with a 4.0 WAR season, earning Rookie of the Year honors. He found his power stroke the next season, hitting 35+ dingers in 12 straight years for the Swallows and topping 40+ in ten of those seasons.

In his second season, Wie made EAB history. Over the summer, he had a 46-game hitting streak, passing Sang-Hyun Kang’s EAB record of 42 from 1921. No one else in EAB has topped 40+ since and he also had a 56 game on-base streak during that stretch. Wie led the Korea League in OBP and OPS for the first time in 1992.

He had four straight seasons (1992-95) leading in OPS and also led in 1998. Ulsan quickly locked him up with an eight-year, $14,440,000 extension after the 1993 season. Wie led in runs scored twice, home runs three times, RBI once, total bases twice, OBP twice, slugging twice, wRC+ thrice, and WAR once. 1993-98 had six straight seasons worth 7+ WAR with a career and league best 9.5 in 1998.

Those efforts put Wie regularly in the MVP conversation. He won it in 1994, 1995, and 1998; while taking second in 1993 and third in 1997. Wie earned seven Silver Sluggers (1992-95, 98, 2000, 2001). With his power, Ulsan became a regular contender. The Swallows made the playoffs four straight years from 1994-97 and won the EAB Championship in 1996.

Wie was the finals MVP in 1996 and had 16 playoff starts, 20 hits, 9 runs, 4 home runs, and 15 RBI. They missed the playoffs in 1998-99, but had a five year streak from 2000-04. 1997 was their only title in the run, suffering KLCS losses in 1994, 2000, and 2001; and first round exits the other seasons. Wie was still beloved for getting them their second-ever ring in 1996.

For his playoff career, Wie had 64 starts, 71 hits, 35 runs, 13 doubles, 13 homers, 45 RBI, a .297/.388/.531 slash, 149 wRC+, and 2.8 WAR. He also played from 1993-95 and 2001-05 for South Korea in the World Baseball Championship. In 75 games and 51 starts, Wie had 55 hits, 45 runs, 12 doubles, 22 home runs, 46 RBI, a .262/.362/.643 slash, 179 wRC+, and 3.4 WAR.

Ulsan signed Wie to another four years and $24,000,000 in May 2001. He remained remarkably consistent in his early 30s, but disappointed Swallows fans by opting out of his deal after the 2003 season. The allure of MLB money was tough to pass up. Wie still remained a beloved favorite of Ulsan fans and his #9 uniform would later be retired.

Wie signed at age 34 to a four-year, $37,400,000 deal with Atlanta. He had a respectable debut season with 3.3 WAR and 127 wRC+, although it was far from award winning. That was sadly the peak of his MLB tenure. In May, a ruptured disc in his back knocked him out for 10 months. Wie was never the same after that and limped to a .171/.189/.257 slash in 26 games in 2006.

Wie didn’t meet the criteria for his fourth year with Atlanta and retired that winter at age 37. For his brief MLB tenure, he had 211 hits, 127 runs, 30 doubles, 47 home runs, 137 RBI, a .272/.335/.505 slash, 128 wRC+, and 4.5 WAR.

For his whole pro career, Wie had 2597 hits, 1479 runs, 443 doubles, 611 home runs, 1592 RBI, 807 walks, a .322/.387/.616 slash, 166 wRC+, and 100.0 WAR. With just Ulsan, Wie had 2386 hits, 1352 runs, 413 doubles, 564 home runs, 1455 RBI, 740 walks, a .327/.393/.628 slash, 170 wRC+, and 95.6 WAR.

Wie didn’t have the longevity to soar up the leaderboards, but he still ranks 40^th as of 2037 in WAR for position players. Among all players with 3000 plate appearances, Wie is still fifth in OPS and eighth in slugging, showing how impressive his hitting was. Plus three MVPs and the longest hitting streak in EAB history made Wie an absolute lock, earning the first ballot induction in 2009 at 97.6%.