Choo Shin-soo's KBO debut rained out

▲ Tarps are placed on the field at Incheon SSG Landers Field in Incheon, 40 kilometers west of Seoul, ahead of a Korea Baseball Organization regular season game between the home team SSG Landers and the Lotte Giants on April 3, 2021. (Yonhap)

▲ Choo Shin-soo of the SSG Landers takes a swing against the LG Twins in the top of the seventh inning of a Korea Baseball Organization preseason game at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on March 30, 2021. (Yonhap)

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Choo Shin-soo's KBO debut rained out

INCHEON, April 3 (Yonhap) -- Choo Shin-soo has waited his whole life to make his debut in South Korean professional baseball. So what's another day?

Choo, the 38-year-old former major leaguer now with the South Korean club SSG Landers, was scheduled to play in his first Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) regular season game on Saturday. But the Landers' game against the Lotte Giants at Incheon SSG Landers Field in Incheon, 40 kilometers west of Seoul, was rained out, along with another game in Seoul between the Kia Tigers and the Doosan Bears.

After 16 years in the majors, Choo signed with the Landers in February and instantly became the most intriguing name to watch in the 2021 KBO season. The 2018 American League All-Star for the Texas Rangers is expected to bat near the top of the Landers' lineup and play primarily in right field.

Choo is the most accomplished big leaguer to come out of South Korea. His 218 home runs and 782 RBIs are most among all Asian players in major league history.

Choo had been set to face Giants' ace Dan Straily, the league's reigning strikeout king. Choo was 4-for-11 with a home run and an RBI against Straily in the majors.

The Giants' first baseman, Lee Dae-ho, also happens to be a childhood friend of Choo's. They played on the same elementary school team in Busan and helped South Korea to the world junior championship in 2000. They spent the 2016 season together in the American League West division -- Choo with the Rangers and Lee with the Seattle Mariners.

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