LG Twins name bench coach their new manager

SEOUL, Oct. 7 (Yonhap) -- The LG Twins of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) named Kim Ki-tae, their bench coach, as the new manager on Friday.
A day after Park Jong-hoon stepped down from the post, the Seoul-based Twins promoted Kim to the bench boss. The team said it will announce further details of the contract in the near future.
Kim, a former All-Star player, joined the Twins organization as the manager of the minor league club in 2009. Over his 15 seasons, Kim was one of the premier left-handed batters, and hit .294 for his career with 249 home runs, which ranks him 11th all-time.
He was voted by fans this year as the greatest designated hitter in the KBO's 29-year history.
After he retired, Kim received coaching training with the Hanshin Tigers in the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), the top league in Japan, and served as a coach for the Yomiuri Giants in the same league from 2007.
"I am at a loss for words," Kim said. "There are a lot of talented players, so I will try to guide them the best I can."
The Twins haven't reached the playoffs since 2002. They started out well, winning 30 of the first 52 games to briefly claim first place. But they only earned 29 wins in the next 81 contests and ended in a tie for sixth place among eight teams. The previous manager Park quit just two seasons into his five-year contract.


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