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“It was fun to see a foreign writer's impression on Korea and Korea's baseball. Thanks for a nice report and your interest in my country's Baseball.” – Hyunwoo, Seoul, South Korea

Ah, the Land of the Morning Calm, or shall we say, the Birthplace of the ThunderStix, but known formally as "CheerStix.” There were plenty of chances to bang the sticks in the inaugural World Baseball Classic, and you can learn about the history of the CheerStix and Korean baseball in The World in a Ballpark: Baseball Goes Global, which is available for purchase at the Buy Joe's Guides page.

Still known to Koreans by their birth name, "stick balloons," in the 2002 World Series, these noisemakers were all the rage as the Angels defeated the Giants in the Major League Baseball Fall Classic. But in Korea, these long-tube balloons have been getting smacked together on every pitch during the Korea Baseball League regular and post-season since the early 1990s.

Unlike The Land of the Rising Sun, Japan, which has more than 10 teams, Korea boasts eight clubs from all over the country, from Gwangju in the southwest to Daejeon in the central region and the capitol city of Seoul. And wherever you go, there is a hardcore group of fans demonstrating their tremendous passion for the universal language known as baseball. Stick balloons, chants and total devotion are the norm.

We hope you enjoy this collage of baseball – Korea style!

In addition to stick balloons, Korea baseball games feature female cheerleaders like those found at college football games in the U.S. Usually one male "cheerleader" will blow a whistle, employ a megaphone and begin popular team chants to get fans fired up. Like Japan, a strong contingent of fans also follow their favorite team on the road.

Ballparks in Korea are less than 30,000 in capacity and are all outdoor, with a mix of natural grass at some parks and artificial turf at others. Like in Japan, there is often a large amount of foul territory and all teams are named after a large corporation where corporate bragging rights are on the line when teams compete.