Kim Kyung-moon named to lead new S. Korean baseball club

Kim Kyung-moon, former manager of the Doosan Bears in the top South Korean baseball league, has been named the inaugural manager of the expansion NC Dinos. The Dinos announced late Wednesday that they have inked Kim to a three-year deal for 1.4 billion won (US$1.3 million). The Dinos are expected to join the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) as the ninth club in 2013. Kim, 52, had previously been the bench boss for the Bears since 2004 and resigned in June this year to take the fall for the team's struggles. He had guided the Bears to the postseason in all but one year during his tenure, and they finished runner-up in 2005, 2007 and 2008. "We named Kim our first manager for his proven ability to nurture young talent," the Dinos said in a statement. A former KBO catcher, Kim also managed South Korea to the gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. But at the time of his resignation, the Bears were only in seventh place among eight teams, and had the league's worst record in May with 17 losses in 25 games. Kim will be formally introduced at a press conference in Changwon, the Dinos' home base some 400 kilometers southeast of Seoul. All KBO clubs are owned and operated by private corporations, including major conglomerates such as Samsung, Doosan and LG. The Dinos are owned by NCsoft, an online game company. The new team will be the league's first expansion since 1991. The KBO wants to add a 10th team to have an even number of teams and have the option of a two-division setting.