The professional baseball team Kiwoom Heroes dismissed both its manager and Director General ahead of the second half of the season.
Kiwoom announced on the 14th, "We notified manager Hong Won-ki, Director General Ko Hyung-wook, and senior coach Kim Chang-hyun of their respective dismissals." The team simultaneously relieved the top leadership on the field and the highest-ranking official in the front office.
Manager Hong Won-ki was dismissed in the middle of the season without completing the final year of his contract. The Kiwoom organization stated, "CEO Wi Jae-min expressed gratitude to manager Hong and Director General Ko for their work on the 14th and communicated the club's decision."
Manager Hong Won-ki signed a two-year contract as the Heroes' manager ahead of the 2021 season. In his first year, the team finished fifth in the regular season and advanced to the postseason, winning the first game of the wildcard playoff against Doosan Bears but lost in the second game and was eliminated.
In 2022, the team finished third in the regular season and advanced to fall baseball. They defeated KT Wiz in the semifinals and LG Twins in the playoffs to reach the Korean Series but finished as runners-up with a record of 2 wins and 4 losses against SSG Landers. After a tight match with a record of 2 wins and 2 losses, they lost in the fifth game, giving up a three-run walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth while leading 4-2.
Manager Hong Won-ki is the first manager in the history of the Heroes to have recorded a victory in the Korean Series. The Heroes reached their first Korean Series in 2019 but ended with a 4-game loss against Doosan Bears.
After finishing as runners-up in the Korean Series, manager Hong obtained a three-year contract extension. However, during the 2023 season, key players Lee Jung-hoo and Ahn Woo-jin left the team due to injuries mid-season, causing the team's ranking to fall to the lowest. For the 2024 season, Lee Jung-hoo (San Francisco Giants) moved to the U.S. while Ahn Woo-jin enlisted in the military, resulting in significant gaps in the team, leading to the lowest ranking for two consecutive years.
Ahead of this season, Kim Hye-sung (Los Angeles Dodgers) moved to the U.S. The key bullpen resource Jo Sang-woo was traded to KIA Tigers. Moreover, the team's strategy on foreign players failed. They released proven 10-win pitcher Heysus and Hurado without renewing their contracts and opted for one pitcher (Rosenberg) and two batters (Puig, Cardenas). However, Puig was released due to poor performance and injury, while Rosenberg and Cardenas are currently sidelined for six weeks due to injuries.
Before the season began, Kiwoom was expected to have the lowest-ranking team. With even the anticipated foreign players underperforming, they fell behind in the ranking competition early on. Since April 13, Kiwoom has remained at the bottom. In the first half of the season, they recorded 27 wins, 61 losses, and 3 ties (winning percentage .307), trailing the 9th place Doosan Bears (36 wins, 49 losses, and 3 ties) by 10.5 games.
Kiwoom earned massive posting fees while sending key players to the U.S. but the overall strength of the team has weakened significantly. By trading core players like Choi Won-tae and Jo Sang-woo for prospects and draft picks, they managed to reduce expenses while also securing trade money. Their competitiveness has dropped with a team composed of rookies, young players, and veteran free agents. It is unfortunate to attribute the performance decline solely to the manager.
Starting from the first game of the second half against the Samsung Lions on the 17th, Seol Jong-jin, Futures Team manager, will take over as acting manager of the first team. The position of first team senior coach will remain vacant for the time being.
Kiwoom appointed Hur Seung-pil as the new Director General. Hur Seung-pil joined Hanwha Eagles in 2011 and gained experience in international operations before joining Kiwoom in 2016. He has been responsible for all international affairs, including MLB posting and foreign player scouting. Since 2022, he has overseen team management and operations.
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