Korean American Christian Media

My 17 Year Love Affair

I can still remember the first time I walked into Dodger Stadium as a boy in 1991. The stadium lights, the bright green field, the loud passionate fans and the heroes known as baseball players. Ever since that day, I have been a passionate fan of the Los Angeles Dodgers. It’s been a hard journey as a fan but a very rewarding one. Through the years I was a fan, we won one game in the playoffs until this year. It is extremely fun attending games as well as watching grown men and women begin acting like children and bonding over a game of baseball. It is a beautiful site.

Even though the Dodgers were not winning, they offered a cultural interest. In 1995, the Dodgers brought up a Japanese pitcher by the name of Hideo Nomo. Immediately he made an impact on the team and Nomo Mania began. It was significant because he was the first Asian that I saw play in any of the pro sports. Then in 1996, after pitching one game in 1994, Chan Ho Park played a full season. He is the first Korean born player to play in Major League Baseball. The Korean community, myself included followed every game he pitched. The older I got and the more I understood the game, my love has grown for not just the players but also the team.

It’s amazing how much more you love something after a long period of time. I think that’s a good way to see it if you are growing as a Christian. Do you enjoy spending time with God? In reality if you have been following God, in time, you should be even more passionate for God. We Christians always speak of the first love moment. For many Christians, that will be the high point in their relationship with God. It is very sad to see this. It is true that we will never forget the time when we fell in love with God or baseball or with a person or thing. It is a high that is unexplainable and extremely joyful. However, there are greater joys and many intrigues God has to offer. He does move from Glory to ever increasing Glory. Of course there are tough times, that is true for anything, but the joy of getting out of that low point and back, to surpassing the previous high is very rewarding. If we give up when times get rough we will never grow in our relationships with God and people. Spend more time with God and your passion and love will grow for Him.

This year as a Dodger fan was one of the hardest years. The team was extremely inconsistent throughout the year. However with the acquisition of Casey Blake, Manny Ramirez, and Greg Maddux late in the season, they turned it around in the final month of the season and won the National League West Division. This team once lost 8 in a row in late August and when people thought they were dead, they won 8 in a row right after to battle back and win. Now the Dodgers are playing in the postseason and as of October 3rd, the Dodgers have won the first two postseason games against the Chicago Cubs in Chicago, the best team in the National League this year. The Dodgers have the city of Los Angeles buzzing about their chances as they look to make it 7 World Series Championships in their franchise and the 6th after they moved to Los Angeles from Brooklyn and the first since 1988. It is going to be a fun ride and I’m very happy to be part of it.