In 1996, Cho was called up to the South Korea national baseball team for the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, United States.
After the season, Cho was named to the South Korea national baseball team that won the gold medal at the Asian Games held in Bangkok, Thailand in December 1998.
Upon Kim Dong-soo's departure through free agency to the Samsung Lions, Cho earned the full-time position behind the plate for the Twins in the 2000 season.
In 2000, his first season as the full-time catcher for the Twins, Cho struggled at the plate, batting .225 with 5 home runs but exhibited strong defensive skills, leading the league in caught-stealing percentage, as he threw out 24 of 50 runners.
During a televised pennant game in August 2009, Cho and one of his teammate pitcher Shim Soo-chang arguing on the mound was caught on camera.