Hanwha Names Ryu Ji-hyun Manager
The Hanwha Eagles named Ryu Ji-hyun, manager of the Korean national baseball team, as their 15th manager on October 13, on a three-year deal worth a total of 2 billion won. Hanwha reached the Korean Series last year for the first time in 19 years but slipped to ninth this season, and former manager Kim Kyung-moon’s three-year contract has ended. Ryu spent his entire playing career with LG and later guided LG to the postseason in 2021 and 2022 as manager. With the national team, he led Korea to the WBC quarterfinals in March and to gold at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. “We will use victories as nourishment and move toward becoming a strong team,” Ryu said. The same day, Hanwha re-signed Asia Quota pitcher Wang Yen-cheng (11-6 this year) for a total of $300,000 and tapped Seok Jang-hyun, a longtime club staffer, as its new general manager.
Source: Sports Donga
LG, Doosan Set Wild Card Game 1 Starters
Fourth-place LG Twins and fifth-place Doosan Bears meet in Game 1 of the Wild Card series at Jamsil Stadium on October 14. LG will start Carlos Carrasco, while Doosan sends out ace Kwak Bin. Carrasco, a 112-game winner in the major leagues, joined LG in July and went 6-3 with a 4.05 ERA in the regular season, including seven perfect innings against Doosan in his KBO debut on August 1. Kwak went 11-7 with a 2.24 ERA and 197 strikeouts, leading the league in both ERA and strikeouts. Because the fifth-place team must win twice to advance to the semi-playoffs, Doosan manager Kim Won-hyung vowed to “pour every pitcher in.” If LG wins Game 1, it will get two days of rest before opening the semi-playoffs against KIA on October 17.
Source: Sports Donga
Jamsil Ends 45 Years of Regular Seasons
Jamsil Baseball Stadium, opened in 1982, hosted its final regular-season game on October 12 as the Doosan Bears faced the Lotte Giants. The stadium will be demolished after this season as part of Seoul’s plan to build a sports and MICE complex, and Doosan and LG will use the Olympic Main Stadium as a temporary home from 2027. Doosan gave fans commemorative postcards and coins and held a photo exhibition in the infield plaza. After the game, the club staged a retirement ceremony for the ballpark and fireworks in front of a sellout crowd. The ceremonial first pitch was thrown by Kim In-sik, the former OB manager who led a Jamsil-based club to its first Korean Series title in 1995. “Our baseball lives were all made here,” said Lotte manager Kim Tae-hyung. Postseason games, including the Wild Card game on October 14, will still be played at Jamsil.
Source: Sports Donga
Korea Names 33-Man APBC Roster
The KBO’s national team committee announced on October 13 a 33-man roster for the 2026 Asia Professional Baseball Championship (APBC). Players must be 24 or younger or within their first three pro seasons, with up to three wild-card players aged 29 or younger. Lotte’s Choi Jun-yong and Han Dong-hee and Samsung’s Kim Ji-chan were chosen as wild cards. WBC standouts such as KIA’s Kim Do-yeong, NC’s Kim Ju-won and Hanwha’s Moon Hyun-bin also made the list. Pitchers from teams that reach the Korean Series will be dropped from the final roster to prevent injuries. The team will gather on November 1 for domestic training and practice games before leaving on November 9 for Tokyo, Japan, where the tournament will be held. The event is meant to develop young talent ahead of the 2027 Premier12 and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. With Ryu Ji-hyun leaving for Hanwha, the national team manager post is vacant, and the committee is searching for a successor.
Source: Sports Donga
Choi Jeong Targets Full Return by Camp
SSG Landers slugger Choi Jeong gave an update on his recovery from surgery. He batted .306 with 20 home runs, 57 RBIs and a 1.013 OPS in 71 games this season, but left the lineup with a hip injury after hitting his 20th homer against KIA on July 16, and had surgery in the United States in August. “My body has recovered a lot. I’ll be back at 100 percent by spring training next year,” he said. Because SSG will move into its new home, Cheongna Dome, in 2028, next season will be the last at Incheon SSG Landers Field. Choi hit his first career home run and the KBO’s first-ever 500th home run at the ballpark. “I’m thinking about how to finish beautifully. I want to end on a high note with good results,” he said, vowing to stay healthy for the full season next year.
Source: Sports Donga
Sugimoto Wins First Asia Quota Title
KT Wiz pitcher Koki Sugimoto of Japan has become the first Asia Quota player to win an individual KBO title. Signed by KT under the Asia Quota system introduced this season, he led the league with 25 holds. A former Japanese independent leaguer pitching professionally for the first time, he became a key setup man with his fastball, slider and splitter. In July he went 1-0 with eight holds and a 1.38 ERA in 13 games, helping KT climb to first place. He also logged 66 2/3 innings, tied for the most among pure relievers in the league. There is talk he could be selected in the NPB draft on October 22, but Sugimoto said, “I don’t know what will happen with the draft. Right now I’m only thinking about our team winning the Korean Series.”
Source: Sports Donga