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Kim Won-hyung is Doosan Bears' new skipper

Published: 20 Oct. 2025, 13:54

Kim Won-hyung [DOOSAN BEARS]

Kim Won-hyung has joined the Doosan Bears as their new manager on a two-year contract worth 2 billion won ($1.4 million) with an additional one-year option, the KBO club announced Monday.

Kim's deal includes an annual salary of 500 million won plus a signing bonus of another 500 million. Kim, 53, most recently served as a pitching coach for the Korean national team.

He debuted as a pitcher in 1991 with the now-disbanded Ssangbangwool Raiders after playing for Jeonju Dong Middle School and Jeonju High School.

Kim's professional career spanned 21 years, including a stint at the SK Wyverns, now called the SSG Landers, where he played 545 games and recorded 134 wins, 144 losses and 26 saves with a 3.92 ERA.
Kim worked as a pitching coach for the Wyverns, the Lotte Giants and Bears after retirement, before serving as the Landers manager from 2021 to 2023.

He led the Landers to a wire-to-wire victory in the 2022 KBO season for the first time in league history. The coach also participated in a coaching training program with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in Japan and then returned to Korea as a pitching coach for the national team.

The Bears have been playing under interim manager Cho Sung-hwan since Lee Seung-yuop resigned in June.

Kim also has ties to the Bears, as he served as the club’s head pitching coach in 2019 when they won both the regular season and the Korean Series. During his two-year stint with the team, the Bears posted a league-best team ERA of 3.91.

“It is an incredible honor to manage a storied club like the Bears,” Kim said. “At the same time, I feel the weight of responsibility. I sincerely thank the club for giving me this opportunity.”

“The Bears have always been a team that puts pressure on opponents with dynamic, high-energy play. I will work to restore that ‘Hustle Bears’ identity and bring meaningful baseball to our fans.”

The Bears struggled during the 2025 regular season, finishing in ninth in the 10-team table.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY KO BONG-JUN [[email protected]]