A good bat flip will typically raise some eyebrows in the opposing dugout, and may put the flipper on the wrong end of an angry pitcher’s crosshairs. (See Jordany Valdespin, just last week.)
Recently, however, Jeon Jun-Woo of the Korean Baseball League’s Lotte Giants gave us one more very important lesson. If you’re going to primp like an arrogant ass, you better make damn sure you have something worth primping for.
With one out in the ninth, Jeon unloaded for what he thought was a game-tying homer. He tossed his bat, with relish. He pointed, first toward the sky, then toward a dugout (though it’s not clear whether it was filled with teammates or opponents).
No matter. The ball was caught at the warning track and Jeon, visibly stunned, stumbled back to his bench. (Watch it here.)
Not sure how they handle such things in Korea, but had he been in the U.S. it’s pretty certain that the reception he received from his teammates—biting and protracted—would have been far more painful than anything an opponent could deliver.
Big fan here in Korea. Even have your book. With that said, there are lots of so called pimping in Korean baseball. Bat flips, shouting, pointing, etc. From the non-incidents involving these pimping, I assume the opponents are not offended. Also, how the batter takes the HBP is a bit different too. Batters do not hesistate to show that he is in pain, rubbing and stuff.
I would not call all this as inferior to those of MLB, but maybe just stemming from different culture and shorter baseball history(big league started in 1982).