Kia Tigers manager Lee Bum-ho (left) shakes hands with his general manager Shim Jae-hak after signing a three-year extension with the Korea Baseball Organization club. (Yonhap)
The 2024 South Korean baseball champions Kia Tigers said Sunday they have given manager Lee Bum-ho a new three-year contract.
The announcement came six days after Lee led the Tigers to the Korean Series title over the Samsung Lions in his first season in charge.
Lee, 42, will make 2.6 billion won ($1.88 million) total in his new deal, which will take effect immediately in place of the second year of the two-year, 900 million-won contract Lee had signed in February.
Under the new pact, Lee will earn 1.5 billion won in total annual salary, 500 million won in signing bonus and 600 million won in incentives, making him the highest-paid manager in the Korea Baseball Organization.
Lee was promoted from hitting coach to manager in February this year after former manager Kim Jong-kook was fired over bribery allegations.
The youngest manager in the KBO this year, Lee guided the Tigers to the best record in the regular season at 87-55-2 (wins-losses-ties), which earned them a bye to the Korean Series.
In the best-of-seven championship round, the Tigers dispatched the second-seed Lions in five games. In the clinching game on Monday, the Tigers rallied from a 5-0 deficit for a 7-5 victory and improved to a perfect 12-for-12 in their Korean Series appearances.
"I'd like to think the club for the support that allowed us to lift the championship trophy," Lee said in a statement released by the Tigers. "I want to reward the team for their show of faith. I will try to win another title during my time here." (Yonhap)
MOST POPULAR