The KIA Tigers have confirmed their coaching staff position to lead the 2024 season.
First, the first-team coaching staff consists of senior coach Jin Gap-yong, pitcher coach Jung Jae-hoon and Lee Dong-geol, hitting coach Lee Bum-ho and Hong Se-wan, operation coach Lee Hyun-gon, baserunning coach Cho Jae-young, defensive coach Park Ki-nam, and battery coach Nakamura Takeshi, with head coach Kim Jong-guk at the center.
The most notable name is Takeshi. Takeshi joined the Chunichi Dragons of the Japanese professional baseball (NPB) as the first pick in 1985, and has been the starting catcher since 1988. Having spent nearly 16 years in the Chunichi Dragons alone, he retired as an active player in 2005 after playing in Yokohama and Rakuten. His overall career record is 1,380 hits, 137 homers and 604 RBIs in 19 seasons, with a 0.995 ERA in stolen base holding ratio of 0.341. Takeshi showed off his strong shoulder by ranking first in the percentage of stolen bases holding back in 1988, 1989, and 1995.
Takeshi is also a star player-turned-coach who played in a total of eight NPB All-Star games. As a coach, he also worked for various teams including Yokohama, Chunichi, and Chiba Lotte. He served as a battery coach for the first division for three years from 2015 to 2017, and coached catchers as battery coach for the second division in the 2018 season.
After returning to Japan after the 2018 season, Takeshi served as the Chunichi Dragons’ first-team battery coach for three years from the 2019 season. This year, he was a baseball commentator and baseball commentator for Nagoya TV in Japan.
Coach Takeshi was invited as an instructor during the Okinawa closing camp last month and spent time with players. “We expect that Takeshi’s coaching experience and leadership will help young players improve their skills,” a Kia official said at the time. KIA hopes that its young catchers, including Han Jun-su and rookie Lee Sang-joon, will grow along with Takeshi’s joining. 랭크카지노
Meanwhile, Son Seung-rak, who led the team from the closing camp last year, will be at the helm of the Futures Team once again. Pitcher coaches Lee Jung-ho and Lee Sang-hwa, batting coach Choi Hee-sup, baserunning coach Park Hyo-il, defensive coach Yoon Hae-jin and battery coach Lee Hae-chang will assist Sohn.
KIA team explains that Kim Sang-hoon, who served as battery analysis coach for the first team, will contribute to strengthening the team’s capabilities. In addition, batting coach Kim Seok-yeon and pitching coach Seo Deok-won will join the remaining team to improve their players’ skills.