Ryu Hyun-jin Holds Fund-Raising Event for Ferry Victims

Ryu Hyun-jin of the Los Angeles Dodgers held an autograph-signing event at the club's stadium on Sunday to raise funds for victims of a ferry that sank off the southwest coast last week.

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Some 300 fans including Korean residents in Los Angeles participated in the charitable event, which saw a spike in merchandise sales as people clamored to have Ryu ink his name for them.

Los Angeles Dodgers' pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin signs autographs prior to a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Dodger Stadium on Sunday to raise funds for the victims of the ferry Sewol. /Courtesy of Los Angeles Dodgers

Ryu and the club plan to deliver all of the proceeds from the event to the families of the victims. "I held the event to help those who are grieving right now, even if I am far away from them. I hope the donations will be of some help", he said.

Ryu also caught a ceremonial first pitch from a fan chosen by a random draw at the event.

He recently donated W100 million to the Community Chest of Korea (US$1=W1,039) to help those suffering from the disaster and expressed his condolences to families of the victims via his Twitter account.

Ryu is set to serve as the starting pitcher against the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday.