Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Joe Ross (32) is a "quarter Korean" who inherited Korean blood from his maternal grandmother.
"Maybe I ate the most rice out of all the players on this team."
Ross, who met the San Francisco Giants ahead of an away game at Oracle Park in San Francisco, California, on the 10th (Korea time), continued with a bright look when asked about his Korean ancestry.
"Korean ancestry is a big part of me. There were times when I was with my grandmother when I was young, but my mother cooked a lot of Korean dishes as a Korean. Almost every day I lived on a meal."
He has drawn attention as a Korean-born major leaguer along with his brother Tyson Ross, who currently works as the front desk of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He is one of the few Korean players in the Major League at present.
Ross said, "Isn't it hard to see Korean or Korean players here in the Major League. So I think it's very cool," he said, explaining the meaning of playing in the Major League as a Korean-born player.
He specifically picked Choi Ji-man as the most memorable Korean player. "I think Choi Ji-man really hit all the balls I throw. Once, I got on base as a batter (Ross is a player who played even when a pitcher was batting in the National League) and remembered Choi Ji-man, saying, "Can you please stop hitting my ball?"
The fact that Ross is of Korean descent is not much known. He even said, "Some of my colleagues still don't know if I'm Korean."
Nevertheless, he had a special affection for Korea. As for my favorite Korean food, "Galbi and bulgogi are delicious, but rice cake dumpling soup is the most delicious," he said, citing rice cake dumpling soup that is difficult for ordinary foreigners to pick. "When I was a minor leaguer, I always looked for a Korean restaurant when I ordered food and ate it, and if there was rice cake dumpling soup on the Korean restaurant menu, I always ordered it," he said with a bright smile.
I also visited Korea as a child. "When I was about six years old. I remember going to Korea and seeing my grandmother's family. I can barely remember because I was very young. "The memory of riding a taxi and the memory of visiting the store is all," he said, fumbling his faint memories.
Unfortunately, my maternal grandmother passed away a few years ago. I haven't been able to go to Korea with my grandmother, but I still want to go there at some point. There are not many opportunities to travel in my career. I went on a family trip back in 2019 and it was my first family trip since 2005 when my brother graduated from high school. Now, my parents are retired, so I'd like to go there at least once because they have a lot of time," he continued.
He said it was "special," but living as an Asian in the U.S. is not as easy as you might think. He also agreed with this point, saying, "I understand it perfectly."
Fortunately, he grew up in the Bay Area (near the Gulf of San Francisco), which has a diverse cultural background.
"I grew up in Oakland and I have bandits in San Francisco. My parents both went to medical school in San Francisco. This place boasts a very diverse culture. Asian culture was also a big part of my growth process. Then, when I traveled to other parts of the United States, I felt that it was not the same. In that sense, I am very grateful that I was able to grow in this area."
He continued, "It's always cool to meet people from different cultures while playing baseball. There are not many black players in baseball right now. We have Taijuan (Taijuan Walker) in our team right now and every time I meet players or staff like that, I think I'm lucky. The same goes for meeting players from Korea or Japan. Sometimes I'm more glad to see my teammate than when I met him. Because this is part of my legacy. Considering where I'm from, I can say it's really cool," he said.
Although the possibility of him playing for Korea at the World Baseball Classic (WBC) was mentioned, there is a possibility that he will not be able to play for Korea due to the tournament regulations that only recognize his parents' nationality.
"I don't know exactly," he said, adding that he does not know the WBC regulations exactly. At the same time, he said, "It's something I've talked about with my brother before. It would be a wonderful thing to be able to run. I didn't have a chance before because of injuries, but it would be great if I had a chance to play. It looked really cool to see Las Nutba playing for Japan at the last tournament. I think it will be a fun experience. I will consider it if I have the opportunity," he said, expressing his desire to become a Korean representative if he has the opportunity.
Even if you can't play for Korea, there is a way to get closer to Korea. It is to enter the KBO League. In this season's KBO League, Korean pitcher Mitch White is playing for SSG Landers.
When he underwent his second Tommy John surgery, he said, "My parents travel a lot after retirement. Sometimes you send me pictures, but once you went to see a baseball game in Japan. I also know how exciting the atmosphere of baseball stadiums in Japan and Korea is. Eric Peddy, who was a teammate in Washington, also told me about his experience playing in Korea. He told me that Korea is a really energetic and exciting place. I thought it would be cool to play in a place that has something to do with my family," he said, acknowledging that he is also interested in playing in Korea.
Even if you choose to go to Korea, it will be in the future. He still has work to do in the big leagues. After agreeing to a one-year contract with Philadelphia, he has played 412/3 innings in 29 games with a 5.40 ERA. In the game on the 10th, he took the mound in the bottom of the ninth inning and closed the game with one scoreless inning.
Before the interview, he warmed up with a catch on the field and then discussed pitching grip with his teammates. "If I used to pitch mainly on two-seam, slider, and change-up before, I'm relying on cutters and four-seam fastballs this year, and I'm grinding my sweeper here. Everyone likes a ball that can strike out with a swing and miss, he said, revealing that he is working on a new pitch.
Now I'm in the ranks of veterans, but I can't give up learning. I learned it from my Washington teammate Max Scherzer. "Sure told me, 'Anytime you get better, any time you can add something, add it'. Sometimes it took a year or two for him to use comfortably in practice, but he steadily honed. Once, he started throwing curves and developed them into good pitches the next year, and the cutter practiced for a while without using them in practice and then started using them the next year. Seeing that, I thought I should try to get better every season," he said of what he felt while watching Scherzer.
Like other major league players, he is in fierce competition for survival every day. "If you look back at the league now, everyone is throwing a 100-mile fastball, a 20-inch breaking ball. You have to adapt to this, or you just have to throw it away. In that sense, I am truly grateful to our team coaches and staff who are teaching me everything well. So far, at least the practice is going well," he said, emphasizing that he is making efforts day by day.
[San Francisco (USA) = KIM JAE HO, MK Sports Correspondent]
