Lotte Giants Part Ways With Manager Kim Tae-hyung After Three Seventh-Place Finishes

The Lotte Giants have decided not to renew manager Kim Tae-hyung’s contract, ending a three-year tenure in which the Busan-based club finished seventh in the Korea Baseball Organization standings every season.

A club official said Saturday that Kim’s contract had expired and that the two sides would not continue their partnership. Lotte has started the process of appointing a new manager and plans to announce its choice once a decision is made.

Kim, 59, joined the Giants in October 2023 on a three-year deal worth 2.4 billion won, including a 600 million won signing bonus and annual salaries of 600 million won. His arrival raised expectations that Lotte could return to the postseason after years of frustration. Before moving to Busan, Kim had guided the Doosan Bears to seven consecutive Korean Series appearances from 2015 through 2021 and won three championships.

The turnaround never materialized in the standings. Lotte went 66-74 with four draws in 2024, followed by a 66-72 record with six draws in 2025. The Giants finished 64-77 with three draws this year. Kim’s cumulative record over the three seasons was 196 wins, 223 losses and 13 draws, for a .468 winning percentage. The results extended Lotte’s postseason drought to nine consecutive seasons since its last appearance in 2017.

The closest the club came under Kim was in 2025, when Lotte entered the midseason break in third place at 47-39 with three draws. A 12-game losing streak during the second half contributed to a steep decline, and the team again ended the year in seventh. It failed to rebound in Kim’s final season.

Kim acknowledged responsibility before Lotte’s regular-season finale against Doosan on Oct. 12, saying a manager must answer for failing to produce results over three years. He also apologized to supporters for not delivering postseason baseball. At that point, he said there had been no specific negotiations with the club about a new contract.

His tenure did produce some signs of progress. Ko Seung-min established himself as the regular second baseman, while Jeon Min-jae and catcher Son Seong-bin helped provide a clearer shape to the club’s defensive core. This season, all five Lotte starters reached the 144-inning qualification mark, including domestic pitchers Park Se-woong, Na Kyun-an and Kim Jin-wook, a first in the KBO’s 10-team era. Those developments, however, did not translate into a higher finish.

The timing leaves Lotte with a narrow window to establish new leadership. Players have already begun preparations for the 2027 season, and the club is scheduled to open its finishing camp in Miyazaki, Japan, on Nov. 4. The appointment will influence the composition of the coaching staff and the direction of the offseason program as the Giants seek a route back to the playoffs.