Orioles unhappy with boos for Kim; Twins already striking out a lot

BALTIMORE — There's a large Korean media contingent at Camden Yards this week, with at least a half-dozen writers from Byung Ho Park's home country crowding around his locker after last night's game to interview him about his night. (Not a whole lot to talk about — after getting a hit in his debut, Park walked once and struck out three times Wednesday.)

So far, however, the South Korean getting the most attention this week isn't Park, but Baltimore rookie outfielder Hyun Soo Kim — and he hasn't even played yet.

During Monday's introductions of the Orioles' roster, a number of fans — not an overwhelming number, but noticeable — booed Kim as he jogged down the orange carpet, a reflection that's been taken as backlash against Kim's refusal to accept an assignment to the minor leagues.

Kim's contract, unlike Park's standard MLB agreement, gives him that right, and the Orioles made it an issue last week when general manager Dan Duquette suggested there wasn't going to be room on the roster for Kim.

Those boos caught the attention of Kim's new teammates, however, and they weren't pleased.

"I think it was very, very, very disrespectful for a man who is just going out there trying to make a name for himself, coming over from Korea," outfielder Adam Jones told baltimorebaseball.com. "That's not who the Orioles fans are, especially to their own kind. … That right there is just showing me a side I didn't like seeing."

Neither did closer Zach Britton, who told the site, "I feel like the fans should support us either way. He's a good player. It's not like he's just some Joe Schmo. He is a top player in Korea and he is going to help us out. So I felt like it would have been nice if the fans were a little more supportive of him."

Judging by how Park was welcomed in Fort Myers, both by his teammates and Twins fans, it's not likely to be an issue next week at Target Field.

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I wrote last month about how the Twins could challenge the major-league record for strikeouts this season, and after two games (admittedly, a microscopic sample size), they're certainly on track. But they've got plenty of company, too.

The Twins struck out 10 times on Opening Day, including five in a row against starter Chris Tillman, and 13 more times Wednesday night. That's 23 in two games, or a full-season pace of 1,863, which would shatter Houston's all-time record of 1,535, set in 2013.

No, nobody expects the Twins to average 11.5 strikeouts a game, but it is noticeable already how susceptible this young lineup might be to strikeouts. Last year, the Twins registered double-digit strikeout totals in 41 games, or one-fourth of their schedule. They're already 2-for-2 in that department, and had a couple of big whiffs in big situations on Wednesday: Miguel Sano striking out on three pitches with two on and two outs in the seventh inning, and Joe Mauer swinging weakly at Britton's 96-mph fastball to end the game with the tying runs on base.

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