The NC Dinos of the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO) have signed LG coach Lee Ho-joon to a three-year, 1.4 billion won ($1.4 million) contract with a signing bonus of 300 million won and an annual salary of 950 million won.
Lee made his professional debut in 1994 when he was drafted by the Haetae Tigers, and went on to play for 24 years with Haetae, SK, and NC before retiring in 2017. In NC, he was the team's leader from 2013 until his retirement.
After his retirement, Lee underwent a year of coaching training with the Yomiuri Giants, and after the training, he served as NC's hitting coach from the 2019-21 season, contributing to the team's first unified championship in 2020. He then moved on to become LG's hitting coach, and has been LG's head coach since May of this season.
“We valued Lee's open communication skills, 토토사이트 proven leadership, and experience as a head coach, as well as his familiarity with KBO clubs and players,” the NC team said in a statement, adding, ”He also understands the rapidly changing trends in baseball through data, and we believe he is the right person to build a strong team for the long term.”
Lee Ho-joon, the fourth head coach of the NC, said, “I am excited to meet the passionate fans of Changwon once again. NC has always been a special team to me, including NC's first KBO League game in 2013 and the first retirement ceremony for the NC franchise, and I am honored to be a part of this special team as a head coach,” said Lee.
“I believe that the growth of young players is the foundation for NC to become a strong team, and we will show exciting baseball to baseball fans in Changwon through speedy and aggressive baseball,” he added.
NC will soon announce the first-team coaching staff that will work hand-in-hand with Lee, who will join the team on the 24th of this month to lead the final training camp in Changwon.