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Landers manager embraces underdog label for new season

Published: 19 Jan. 2026, 13:32 Updated: 19 Jan. 2026, 18:20

This Oct. 11, 2025, file photo shows SSG Landers manager Lee Sung-yong. [YONHAP]

The SSG Landers exceeded many pundits' expectations last season to finish in third place in the KBO, and their manager Lee Sung-yong said Monday he hopes his club will be overlooked again in 2026.

"It's actually good for us when people underestimate us. It fuels me and my players," Lee told reporters at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, before departing for Florida to begin spring training. "Last year, our players overcame so much adversity to win so many games. The goal this season is to finish in a higher place than last season."

The Landers weren't regarded as a postseason contender before the start of the 2025 season, and injuries to key players in the early going threatened to derail their season. But the shutdown bullpen carried them throughout the year as the Landers advanced to the postseason with room to spare.

"We want to maintain our edge in the bullpen, and we will look to improve our starting pitching, hitting and defense during spring training," Lee added.

A key component of the Landers' plans for an upgrade in hitting will be veteran slugger Kim Jae-hwan, who signed with the Landers in December after contract talks with the Doosan Bears fell through.

"We will try to optimize his hitting by using him mostly as a designated hitter," Lee said of his plans for the new player.

Kim, the 2018 regular-season MVP, said he still felt a bit awkward in Landers gear, and it will take some adjustments during spring training.

He declined to get into specifics of his contract talks with the Bears, the only KBO team he'd played for since his debut in 2008, but did acknowledge he chose to sign with a different team because he didn't want to have regrets at the end of his career.

"It was really tough feeling the gaze of the fans who were disappointed with me," Kim said of his trying 2025 season, in which he was limited to just 13 homers and a .241 batting average in 103 games. "Now that I've switched clubs, I am not feeling any pressure at all. I just want to get settled in with the new team, and I don't really have time to think about anything else."

When healthy, the 37-year-old Kim should be good for 20-plus home runs, especially now that he will be playing his home games at hitter-friendly Incheon SSG Landers Field.

"I am curious myself to see how well I am going to hit in that stadium," he said. "But if I expect better numbers just because I am moving to a smaller ballpark, then things can go sideways."

On the pitching side, manager Lee said starter Kim Kwang-hyun will move toward the back end of the rotation and will get occasional rests throughout the season.

The 37-year-old left-hander struggled to a career-worst 5.00 ERA in 28 outings last season while dealing with shoulder problems.

Lee said he will help the franchise icon have an injury-free season, and Kim himself said he will go along with the manager's plans and not try to do too much.

"In the past, I always put pressure on myself to be ready to pitch on Opening Day or at least during the first weekend of the season," Kim said. "This year, I will take my time, even if I fall behind others in my preparation. If we want to go deep into the postseason, we all have to take care of our bodies."

Yonhap