[Bread-Baking Typewriter] The Sweet and Bittersweet Nostalgia of the 'Crazy' Days

Players of Gunsan Sanggo cheering in the 1972 Golden Lion Flag final. Photo by Gunsan Baseball 100 Years History

"Does this make any sense? Even dramas get criticized if written like this."

In 1972, a sports game more dramatic than any drama took place at Seoul Stadium. The golden lion flag high school baseball final between the traditional powerhouse Busan High School and the rising star Gunsan Commercial High School. No one predicted Gunsan Commercial High School would win.

Until the 8th inning, the game was tight, but when Busan High scored to make it 4-1, it seemed the prediction was becoming reality. In the bottom of the 9th inning, Gunsan Commercial's last attack. With a hit and a walk, the score became 4-2 with one out and bases loaded. At bat was the second batter, Yang Gi-tak. He was a student who had lost his father and often skipped breakfast because his mother worked as a street vendor. When Yang Gi-tak hit a single to tie the game, the stands erupted. The game ultimately ended in a dramatic 5-4 comeback victory for Gunsan Commercial. It is said that during the subsequent car parade in Gunsan, 70,000 out of 120,000 citizens poured out into the streets.

High school baseball in the 1970s was like a movie, inning by inning. As the book’s title suggests, everyone who lived through this era was obsessed with high school baseball. On days when their favorite team lost, they felt so frustrated and unfair that they couldn’t eat. The players felt the same. Players on high school baseball teams were so popular that they were bombarded with hundreds of fan letters. One player who tasted defeat in the finals still, over 50 years later, says, "We lost because of a referee’s wrong call. Even now, thinking about it is so painful." The book is full of stories from those obsessed with 1970s high school baseball.

Of course, it doesn’t paint everything sweetly. It candidly reveals bitter stories as well. From the practice of overworking promising players to achieve short-term results, to the dark historical background of baseball’s revival under the 3S policy of the Park Chung-hee and Chun Doo-hwan military regimes. The violent culture rampant in baseball teams is also discussed. Even Sun Dong-ryul reportedly says a word or two when he meets seniors who used violence in the past, asking, "Why did you hit so much back then?" Considering that Sun Dong-ryul was a star pitcher even in high school and still got hit like that, one can imagine how bad it was.

So why were we so passionate about high school baseball? Because it was the only sport of the time that resembled life, uncertain even a step ahead. An absolute powerhouse like Gyeongbuk High School ruled an era, and a rising star appeared like a comet, making history anew. We were moved by players growing through hardship and adversity, and we cried with teams experiencing despair. Unimaginable dramatic reversals unfolded.

Therefore, this book is not an ‘old men’s baseball chat room talk show.’ Although baseball is in the title and on the cover, its essence lies elsewhere. The book is a memoir that honestly longs for the passionate past of intense joy and disappointment. It lets you smell the nostalgia of those who tried to relieve the harsh stresses of life through high school baseball. The author says it is a story aimed at the 50s and 60s generation, but this is why it resonates beyond generations. After finishing the book, you might envy those who truly enjoyed the pleasures of high school baseball.

However, there is no need to regret by saying, "There will never be such joy again." High school baseball may have disappeared, but there are always subjects to be passionate about in any era. There is no need to lament, "Kids these days don’t know that fun." If you keep saying that, you become an old fogey stuck in the past.

There is also a generation that grew up cheering for the StarCraft finals between Lim Yo-hwan and Hong Jin-ho. Now, they watch the LoL World Championship on YouTube, marveling at Faker’s great performance. The way we enjoy culture has changed, but looking back, we have always been obsessed with something. Like this book, someday in the future, there will be a day to joyfully savor the nostalgia unique to 2022.

We Were Crazy Then: 1970s High School Baseball | Written by Choi Hong-seop | W Media | 438 pages | 17,000 KRW

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.