Surreal scenes as S. Korea league swings back to life

The 10-team Korea Baseball Organization is batting leadoff in the global effort to return professional team sports to the mainstream in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

After a five-week delay, the KBO has opened its regular season, with teams competing in empty stadiums. Everyone involved in playing and televising the games has their temperature checked on the way in, and all umpires and base coaches are required to wear masks on the field. Spitting is strictly prohibited and two traditional dugout staples－chewing tobacco and sunflower seeds－are banned.

In an effort to put a lighter spin on the eerie atmosphere, cheerleaders perform frenzied dance routines high up in the bleachers, scoreboards flash encouraging messages from fans and celebrities, and some teams have put up giant banners in the outfield seats with pictures of spectators wearing masks.

The KBO plans to play its full 144-game regular season, leading up to a first-round playoff abbreviated from best-of-five to best-of-three.

For SK Wyverns first baseman Jamie Romak, the lone Canadian in the KBO, it's surreal, to say the least.

The 34-year-old from London, Ontario, had brief MLB stints with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Arizona Diamondbacks before heading to Korea in 2018, and in his debut season he set the Canadian record for foreign-league home runs with 43. He followed up with 29 round-trippers last season.

"We are playing with a lot of gratitude, considering the worldwide conditions for professional sports," Romak said in an interview with PostMedia Canada this week.

"Our home stadium in Incheon hung banners with pictures of fans across the outfield bleachers and the team set up a live Zoom feed on the scoreboard so fans can connect and cheer us on. They've also allowed our cheerleaders to perform as usual, along with the 'emcee' that heads up each player's individual cheer song.

"There might not be anybody in the 26,000 seats, but our stadium keeps the music pumping. They've really done a great job in trying to give us a game-like atmosphere. The South Korean players are aware the world is watching, but I'm not sure they care too much. The foreign players are very aware."

Playing in empty stadiums is nothing new for Romak.

"I've played in some international tournaments with Team Canada in big, empty stadiums," he said. "When we played against Germany in Taiwan, you could pretty much count the number of fans on your two hands. We also played in some real cool and hostile environments like Guadalajara, Mexico, where we beat the host in the semis and then beat the Americans for the gold medal at the 2011 Pan-Am Games.

"But this is definitely a weird feeling. Spring training was really dialled down, and we were only allowed to practice. They wanted to keep our group tight and limit outside exposure. They also encouraged us to stay home as much as possible when we weren't at the park, so life was pretty slow for a while.

"South Korea has done a great job handling this crisis. Considering the dense population, it certainly could have been a disaster, but mostly through testing they did very well in identifying problem areas and containing them. Culturally, the people acted in unison. We just finished a quick road trip where there was only one entrance in and out of the hotel, with a thermal-imaging scanner set up for checks coming and going.

"We still wear masks and have our temperature taken constantly, and I had a cashier at a store correct me the other day on the way I was wearing my mask ... I guess my nose was too exposed. People would be pretty shocked how quickly things are returning to normal here."

And having the opportunity to touch all the bases is keeping Romak's baseball dream alive and well.

"It's been a blast," he said."Every day, I wake full of adrenaline, nerves and excitement to play. It really is a thrill for me."