Alumni from Paichai High School in Seoul ask the Korea Baseball Softball Association (KBSA) to reconsider a six-month suspension affecting the school’s baseball team. The punishment follows player remarks made during Paichai’s first-round game against Gwangju Jeil High School at the Cheongryonggi National High School Baseball Championship on Monday. The tournament is described as the country’s oldest and biggest high school baseball event.
According to the reports, some Paichai players shouted taunts toward the Gwangju Jeil dugout, including phrases such as “Let’s go to Starbucks!” and “Tank Day!” The remarks are linked to a May 18 Starbucks Korea promotion commemorating the anniversary of the Gwangju pro-democracy uprising. The campaign offered discounts on “Tank” tumbler sets with a slogan comparing the sound of putting a tumbler on a table to “Tak,” and it drew criticism for allegedly mocking the democratization movement.
The alumni association says it is seeking leniency from KBSA regarding the suspension, while the disciplinary action is presented as a response to insensitive trash talk during the game.
