The final LG-Doosan game of the season, played Oct. 7 at Jamsil Baseball Stadium, drew a full house. The ballpark, which opened in 1982, will close after this season and be rebuilt as a domed stadium.
The last 'Jamsil Derby' was played at Jamsil Baseball Stadium, the symbol of Korean pro baseball. According to Kyunghyang Shinmun, the Oct. 7 game was LG and Doosan's final meeting of the season and the last rivalry game at the current ballpark. All 23,750 seats were sold about 1 hour and 15 minutes before first pitch, and LG won 7-5.
광고 문의 · 300×250The game and the numbers
LG starter Im Chan-gyu struggled, allowing five runs over five innings, but with the lineup's support he earned his 15th win against 7 losses to take sole lead in the league in wins. LG's home attendance for the season reached 1,622,238, the first time in club history it has topped 1.6 million in a season. The packed crowd stayed to the end as if to remember the teams' last Jamsil showdown.
Before the game, club legends Lee Byung-kyu and Park Yong-taek threw ceremonial first pitches. LG manager Yeom Kyung-yeop recalled that his first game and first hit as a player came at Jamsil, and also the tears he shed there after losing the 2014 Korean Series as Nexen's manager. Doosan manager Kim Won-hyung said he watched Korea beat the United States 2-0 at the 1982 world championship here as a fourth-grader.
From the 1982 opening to a new dome
Jamsil Baseball Stadium officially opened on July 15, 1982. LG and Doosan have shared it since 1986, building Seoul's signature rivalry, and each Children's Day the two meet in a game that has become a holiday ritual for families. In head-to-head play from 1986 through last season, Doosan leads 378 wins, 20 draws and 336 losses.
The ballpark closes after this season and will be rebuilt as a domed stadium. The target for completion is reported to be 2032, and until 2031 the two clubs will use a temporary ballpark of fewer than 20,000 seats built near Jamsil's main stadium. With capacity shrinking, competition for tickets could intensify, and fans have high hopes for the new venue's facilities and access.
For fans, the disappearance of a ballpark that has held four decades of great games, tears and cheers is more than the loss of a building. The dome offers a game environment unaffected by weather, but how to carry on the stories Jamsil built remains the question.