LG hitting coach Lee Ho-jun ‘makes golden return’

LG Twins first base hitting instructor Lee Ho-joon, who led the team to the Korean Series title, will return to his hometown team, the SSG Landers, as the team’s manager.

LG defeated KT 6-2 in Game 5 of the best-of-seven 2023 KBO League Korean Series at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on Wednesday. With the victory, LG won four straight games to win the Korean Series after losing Game 1.

SSG, which announced the termination of manager Kim Won-hyung’s contract on March 31, has reportedly named LG Twins first-team hitting coach Lee Ho-jun as its new manager. Kim Won-hyung led SSG to a third-place finish in the regular season (76 wins, 65 losses, and three ties) last year, 먹튀검증 but a three-game sweep in the semifinals against NC ended the fall feast.

The club announced the termination of Kim Won-hyung’s contract,

“We decided that changes and innovations were needed, including the overall team management and player generation change. In order to renew the team and transform it into a stronger team that is more loved, changes were inevitable,” the club explained. “We have decided to go beyond the initial changes in the composition of the players and coaching staff to replace the on-field leadership.”

Former Major League Baseball stars such as Park Chan-ho and Choo Shin-soo, as well as former SK manager Trey Hillman, had been considered for the position, but the club was looking for someone who understood the direction of the organization more than its performance. SSG has named Lee Ho-jun as its new head coach and is expected to make an official announcement shortly after the Korean Series ends.

Following OSEN’s report, “[Exclusive] ‘Kim Won-hyung fired’ SSG’s new manager, LG batting coach Lee Ho-jun…official announcement after Korean Series” on May 5, SSG president Kim Sung-yong admitted that “Lee Ho-jun is among the candidates for the managerial position”.

“I was only told to prepare for the interview,”

It is believed that the team did not want to talk about it for fear that it would have a negative impact on the team’s mood ahead of the Korean Series. According to multiple sources familiar with the club’s internal affairs, Lee has been selected as the new head coach, even though the interview process remains open.

Lee, who graduated from Gwangju Il-Go and started his professional career with Haetae in 1994, played in 2053 games in the first team through SK and NC, leaving behind a batting average of .282 (6663 hits, 1880 runs), 337 home runs, 1265 RBIs, and 943 runs scored.

Notably, Lee enjoyed the best years of his baseball career with SK. He helped the team win three Korean Series titles in 2007, 2008, and 2010. In addition to his outstanding skills, Lee’s personality, baseball knowledge, and leadership have been praised for making him a great coach in the future.

After retiring from active duty, he received coaching training with the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball, and after returning to Korea, he served as the hitting coach for the NC first team and is now the hitting coach for the LG first team, helping them win the regular season title. This season, he led LG to a first-place finish in the regular season team batting average.