Why did Kiwoom suddenly appoint a veteran with an annual salary of 22132 hits as a playing coach? Retirement is still

Apr 18, 2025

Why did Kiwoom suddenly appoint a veteran with an annual salary of 22132 hits as a playing coach? Retirement is still
A game between the Kiwoom Heroes and the LG Twins at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on the 9th. Kiwoom Lee Yong-kyu is talking with Park Joo-hong about hitting. Gocheok = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2025.04.09/



Why did Kiwoom suddenly appoint Lee Yong-kyu as the playing coach.

Kiwoom Heroes announced on the 18th that veteran outfielder Lee Yong-kyu was appointed as a playing coach.

It is common to appoint a playing coach who plays a role as a bridge between senior and junior players but also has a strong performance. However, the appointment of a playing coach has its own significance in the early days of the season while working on a league schedule.




Kiwoom is playing baseball with young players as part of its rebuilding process this season. It became a dark horse in the beginning of the season due to fearless play by players, but it recently lost four consecutive games, including a sweep against the Lotte Giants during the week due to unstable pitching and hitting performance. a fall to the bottom. It seems that he chose Lee Yong-kyu's appointment as a playing coach as a card to change the stagnant team atmosphere.

Why did Kiwoom suddenly appoint a veteran with an annual salary of 22132 hits as a playing coach? Retirement is still
A game between the Kiwoom Heroes and the LG Twins at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on the 9th. Kiwoom Lee Yong-kyu is talking with Park Joo-hong about hitting. Gocheok = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2025.04.09/
In fact, Lee Yong-kyu seemed closer to training as a leader than to playing a player this season. Ahead of this season, he signed a contract of 200 million won, but there is no record of playing in the game. It's not even in the entry. Instead, he was already acting as a de facto playing coach, continuing to accompany the team, throwing batting balls before the game and giving advice to juniors.

Lee Yong-kyu made his professional debut for the LG Twins in 2004 and has been playing as a Kiwoom player since 2021 after playing for the KIA Tigers and Hanwha Eagles. It was a leadoff representing the league, which played 2021 games and had 2,132 hits.




Why did Kiwoom suddenly appoint a veteran with an annual salary of 22132 hits as a playing coach? Retirement is still
Ha Joo-seok and Lee Yong-kyu greet Kiwoom and Hanwha at Hanwha Life Ball Park in Daejeon on the 12th. Daejeon = Reporter's book@sportschosun.com/2025.04.12/
Kiwoom highly appreciated Lee Yong-kyu's rich experience, sincerity, consistency, and self-management skills throughout his career, revealing the reason for his appointment as a playing coach. The club expects Lee Yong-kyu, who was appointed as a playing coach, not only to serve as a strong mentor for young players in the team, but also to empower the team's victory as a veteran player on the ground.

Lee Yong-kyu also said, `I feel a heavy responsibility to take on an important position.'"We will do our best to help young players in the team adapt well to the professional stage and unleash their skills to the fullest. As a player, I will do my best to help the team."

However, the appointment of a playing coach is not directly linked to retirement. An official from Kiwoom said, `I understand that he has no intention of retiring yet,' according to Lee Yong-kyu's situation.






This article was translated by Naver AI translator.