SSG Landers will probably be the team to watch closely at the end of the Korean Series. This is because they are in the process of hiring a new manager.
Before the start of the Korean Series between the LG Twins and KT Wiz, news broke about SSG’s new manager. LG’s hitting coach Lee Ho-joon was said to be taking the helm of SSG.
The club vehemently denied it. “We haven’t even interviewed him yet. After the Korean Series, we will interview the candidates and make a decision on the head coach.”
If SSG’s plan goes according to plan, the interview for the new coach is imminent. If LG wins Game 5 of the Korean Series on the 13th, the season will end immediately. LG wins. LG lost Game 1 2-3, but rebounded with a 5-4 win in Game 2, an 8-7 win in Game 3, and a 15-4 win in Game 4.
Their three-game winning streak after losing Game 1 puts them on the doorstep of winning the Korean Series, 바카라사이트 which means the 14th is the date SSG will be able to “interview” managerial candidates. If KT wins, the series will go to Game 6, and the interview will be pushed back to the 15th.
SSG is being cautious.
The potential coach had to play in the Korean Series. In the meantime, SSG lost another legend.
Park Jung-kwon, who served as the “One Clubman” from 2004 to 2019, retired and became the second team hitting coach and first team hitting coach.
SSG suffered a wave of coaching departures after Kim Min-jae, its operations and infield coach, and Chung Kyung-bae, its hitting coach, left to become head coach of the Lotte Giants and head coach of the Hanwha Eagles, respectively. Secondary pitching coach Cho Woong-chun and battery coach Jeong Sang-ho also left for other teams.
In addition, on the first of this month, the club decided not to re-sign first-team pitching coach Chae Byung-yong, defense coach Son Ji-hwan, strength coach Kwak Hyun-hee, and future team (second-team) pitching coach Park Joo-un and conditioning coach Ryu Jae-jun.
All of them were part of last year’s ‘unified championship’. Second team hitting coach Lee Jin-young also left. It’s not just one or two coaches.
The second team is in the midst of a finalization process in Kagoshima, Japan, under the new coaching regime of Son Si-heon. It’s a period of inactivity for the time being, but there’s a lot of work to be done, including organizing and running the team, and preparing for next year’s spring camp, which is three months away.
As the regular season ended late and the Korean Series won’t start until mid-November, the club’s preparations for next season are bound to be slow. Moreover, the inability to appoint a first-team manager will delay the formation of the first-team coaching staff.
This is why SSG is paying close attention to the outcome of the Korean Series between LG and KT.