Korean Baseball Fans 'Embarrassed' By Kang
PITTSBURGH (93-7 The FAN) - By now you've heard about Jung Ho Kang's DUI in South Korea. Dashcam video of the incident has also been released.
After a collision, the video shows Kang's car fleeing the scene.
At first, a passenger in the car claimed they were driving, but Seoul Police say the dashcam video shows Kang was driving. And his BMW is all banged up.
The Fan's Starkey and Mueller Show got more information about what happened from South Korean television reporter for KBSN Daniel Kim when Joe Starkey talked with him about Kang's incident.
Kang played ball in South Korea for nine years for signing with the Pirates. Kim said in the past that Kang is the Michael Jordan of South Korea, but lately his stock is falling in the eyes of the fans.
"I think most Koreans are embarrassed by this situation," Kim said. "This is the second, somewhat of a very negative news about him. I think we gave him a little bit of a benefit of the doubt with the incident in Chicago and he hasn't been really charge yet, so we're hoping for the best, and we're kind of getting to the point where we're kind of forgetting about it, and then this happens."
In a statement released by Kang's management company, Leeco Sports Agency, the baseball star apologized to his fans and his Pirates' teammates:
"Today, I got behind the wheel after drinking, and committed an irrevocable mistake... I am deeply regretting the incident."
Last summer, Kang got in trouble when a woman in Chicago claimed he drugged her and sexually assaulted her in a hotel room. Kang hasn't been charged. Chicago Police say they haven't finished the investigation because they have not been able to talk to the alleged victim.
Kim says these incidents from Kang are changing the way Korean fans viewed their once favorite athlete.
"We're kind of questioning ourselves whether we knew Jung Ho at all, because we certainly didn't see these types of incidents to appear," said Kim.
In this latest incident, Kang had a blood alcohol level of .085. That's slightly above the legal limit in Pennsylvania, but well above the legal limit in South Korea which is .05.
It's not clear yet, how this will affect his status with the team.