A Seoul high school baseball team has decided to appeal a six-month suspension handed down by the Korea Baseball Softball Association over trash talk during a tournament game.
Pai Chai High School's baseball team received the six-month ban last week after players yelled "Let's go to Starbucks!" and "Tank Day!" at opponents from Gwangju Jeil High School during the Cheongryonggi National High School Baseball Championship in Seoul. The chants were tied to a controversial Starbucks Korea promotion on the anniversary of the 1980 Gwangju pro-democracy uprising.
The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education said Pai Chai will file its appeal with the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee by the Wednesday deadline. Players and parents traveled to Gwangju on Monday to apologize in person, and students from both schools visited the May 18th National Cemetery to pay respects.
Gwangju Jeil High School principal Lee Gyu-yeon said at a press conference, "I would like to ask the KBSA to please allow Pai Chai High School's baseball players to have a fresh start on the field." The school's alumni association also called for leniency while urging accountability for the coaches.
