I'm not wandering around. At my house...29G was sad without a home stadium. Miracle 4th place, so I'm more grateful for Ulsan
May 12, 2025
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NC Dinos manager Lee Ho-joon looked back on the past time he endured without a home stadium before the doubleheader with the Doosan Bears at Jamsil Baseball Stadium on the 11th.
On March 29, an incident that shocked both NC and the baseball world occurred. The louver, a structure installed at Changwon NC Park, fell and hit three spectators in the stadium. One of them died after being taken to the hospital because of a major head shock. It couldn't have happened, and it shouldn't have happened in the future.
NC paid tribute to the fans who left in despair, and at the same time came up with measures to prevent a recurrence. Stadium safety checks began. NC started with removing all hundreds of louvers left at Changwon NC Park. The club, Changwon City, and Changwon Facilities Corporation formed a joint task force to reorganize and normalize the stadium.
In the meantime, the players began their wandering lives. At first, the away game proceeded as scheduled, the home game was canceled, and the safety check was completed, but the problem to be solved in a short period of time was not solved. If the home game was canceled continuously, future arrangements were also a problem. NC has held out so far by asking the opponent team for their understanding and playing the game at the opponent's home stadium. Thus, NC played 29 consecutive away games from the Gocheok Kiwoom Heroes match on the 4th of last month to the 2nd doubleheader game against Jamsil Doosan on the 11th.
In the end, NC and KBO have decided to set up an alternative home stadium. Changwon City was only turning its back at a time when the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport demanded a precise safety diagnosis that took months to reopen. Fortunately, as Ulsan City, which is active in attracting professional baseball games, reached out, NC announced that it would use Ulsan Munsu Baseball Stadium as its home stadium from the three consecutive games against the Kiwoom Heroes, which will be played from the 16th. Munsu Baseball Stadium is also the second home of the Lotte Giants.
Of course, it is difficult to expect Ulsan as the same home stadium as Changwon. Anyway, it's because living on the road is the same. It is also regrettable for the team that they are not able to use the training facilities only at Changwon NC Park at all. An official said that he seems to have stayed at home in Changwon for about three days during the 29 consecutive away games, but the players' circumstances are not much different. Still, it seems to be satisfied that there is a 'home'.
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NC is gaining strength again as it has become accustomed to wandering life to some extent. He has recently won seven consecutive games and ranked fourth with 17 wins, 18 losses and one draw in the season. It remained in 7th place until the doubleheader with Doosan on the 11th, but it was a big deal to catch both games and add two wins in a day. There is only a 0.5 game difference from the fifth- to sixth-place teams, but it was definitely meaningful that the players came up to the top despite the difficult conditions.
Doosan's doubleheader sweep was more valuable because it was the result of the absence of second baseman Park Min-woo, catcher Kim Hyung-joon and foreign batter Davison due to injuries. Young players, including Han Seok-hyun, Chun Jae-hwan, and Choi Jung-won, wielded hard hits to boost the atmosphere.
Coach Lee said after the game, `"Ji Jin-hwan and Han Seok-hyun played both games of the doubleheader, but maintained their concentration until the end in hitting and defense, which was a great help to the team. I want to thank the players who played well by focusing until the end, and thank all the fans who came to the ballpark to support me" he said.
When NC prepared an alternative stadium in Ulsan, Changwon City belatedly "We will complete the maintenance of facilities for the reopening of Changwon NC Park by the 18th." responded.
NC thanked Changwon City for the announcement of its countermeasures. However, the club plans to play the game at Ulsan Munsu Baseball Stadium from the 16th as scheduled. The schedule announced by Changwon City is not confirmed, but at the target time of completion of the maintenance, and the club will check whether it will actually complete the stadium inspection and decide on future plans after internal discussions. NC is concerned that any delay in Changwon's maintenance schedule could cause confusion and further disappointment to fans, and it is also important to take responsibility for Ulsan City for supporting temporary home games. The club will closely check the actual maintenance situation and carefully decide on future plans in consultation with KBO and Ulsan City.
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
