If something far beyond common sense has happened in a professional baseball team, you should not try to find a reasonable answer within the baseball team. The right answer is only when you look at the "owner," who is higher than the baseball team. A professional baseball team is a group of baseball experts. In most cases, rational decision-making is made through the system. Sometimes there are unconventional choices and decisions that make you tilt your head, but most of them do not deviate significantly from the common sense line in baseball. Unconventional choices often have their own rational basis, or when you look back later, you often nod your head, saying, "It was worth it."

In this regard, the recent series of developments surrounding SSG Landers has been strange from any point of view. SSG replaced 'winning head coach' Kim Won-hyung on October 20. He led the team to the first-ever "wire-to-wire" championship (not to miss a single day of the season) and the Korean Series title last year, and cut the coach, who had just completed the first season of his three-year contract renewal, before the ink of his contract was dry. If the team's performance is at the bottom of the list, SSG is a team that went straight to the semi-playoff as the third place this year. Although he was eliminated from the semi-playoff with three consecutive losses, it is a clear achievement that led the team to fall baseball for the second consecutive year. Nevertheless, SSG cut the director.

The owner of the team wrote, "Wait for me" in the manager's post

Usually, in this case, it is reasonable to assume that the club's superiority and owner's mind have changed. Clues are overflowing. First of all, head coach Kim Won-hyung is not a coach appointed directly by team owner Chung Yong-jin. He was appointed as a manager during the SK Wyverns and succeeded in employment when Shinsegae acquired the baseball team. For this reason, rumors have been circulating in the baseball world since the first year of SSG's foundation that "the manager may change after the season." The rumor gained more convincing power when SSG did not renew its contract with head coach Kim even after confirming its regular season victory last year. Usually, it is a long-standing practice in the baseball world to sign an extension contract to prevent "lame duck" and empower leadership when a manager who is about to expire performs well. SSG remained silent until the start of the Korean Series, and announced the news of the renewal of the "three-year total of 2.2 billion won" after Game 4 of the series.

Upon hearing the news of manager Kim's contract at the time, a baseball veteran said, "I've seen him renew his contract ahead of the Korean Series, but I've never seen a club renewing his contract in the midst of the Korean Series." The timing is strange," he said. At that time, SSG was on the defensive with two wins and two losses in the series as it lost to Kiwoom Heroes in Game 4. In addition, as LG manager Ryu Ji-hyun, who was eliminated from the playoffs, failed to renew his contract in the end, public criticism was focused on the LG club, which did not present an extension contract early on.

In fact, Ryu Sun-kyu, the then general manager, told reporters when asked about the background of the renewal, "Isn't the baseball world untidy recently?" The rumors that the coach would change if he did not win seemed to have an impact. "We notified the coach of the contract renewal plan to empower him," he explained. This is the reason why it was evaluated that he was forced to renew the contract because he was conscious of public opinion. Although he won with two consecutive wins after renewing his contract with the coach, the aftertaste of the game was not refreshing.

During this season, the coach's leadership was greatly damaged. When a fan posted a message on Chung Yong-jin's social media (SNS) "striking" head coach Kim Won-hyung, the owner wrote a reply, acknowledging, "It's not just you who knows," and "Wait." Normal owners don't respond this way on social media.

There was a big backlash because the owner sympathized with the criticism of the coach. In the baseball world, it was said that it was virtually a notice of replacement. A baseball player strongly criticized the team owner for executing the manager publicly. During the semi-playoff period, which ended with three consecutive losses, it became a hot topic when it was revealed that the owner left before the game ended. It was said that the owner was "furious" at SSG's helpless game. All the clues pointed in one direction: "The replacement of the director." And as everyone expected, head coach Kim was cut off.

"It's not something that a club can do"

Under these circumstances, there are naturally suspicions that "owner Jung Yong-jin ordered the dismissal of head coach Kim Won-hyung." However, SSG strongly denies that "there was no order from the owner in the dismissal of the coach." It is explained that the team only received final approval from the owner after making the decision after in-depth discussions internally. SSG said in an official statement, "After the end of the postseason, we conducted a fierce internal cold review and saw that change and innovation were needed for a team that continues to develop. At first, it was determined to form a team, a generational change, team management, and overall game management, but it was also decided to change the coach." A key SSG official said, "I know that I see it from the outside with a questionable perspective, but the exact fact is that there was no owner order in the process of replacing the coach."

Of course, compared to last year's winning season, coach Kim Won-hyung's leadership this season was not unfortunate. During the season, he had a big and small discord with the coaches, and there were many regrets about the use of players and the management of the game. However, there are conflicting opinions on whether it is necessary to replace the coach. Many say that the justification for "generational change" that was put forward as the reason for the manager's change is also less convincing. SSG is the league's "oldest" baseball team, with an average age of 28.9 years. He has two of the league's oldest players, including Choo Shin-soo and Kim Kang-min, and Ko Hyo-joon is also 40 years old, and Noh Kyung-eun, who will be in his 40s next year. In addition, many of the main players, including Choi Jung (36), Han Yu-seom (34), Choi Joo-hwan (35), and Kim Sung-hyun (36), are in their mid-30s or older. SSG, not coach Kim Won-hyung, signed with these players and formed a team.

A baseball player pointed out, "When I won last year's integrated championship, I boasted the 'power of veterans', and now, a year later, I am putting the existence of veterans as the basis for the need for 'generation change'. An official from another club's management team said, "Winnow's team, which competes for the postseason like SSG, cannot be artificially replaced by generations." The total salary of the team is the top of the league, but it does not add up to raising prospects in the first division. If head coach Kim Won-hyung was eliminated from the round of 5 competition while hiring a young promising player, that would have been another reason for replacement, he pointed out.

Regarding the slogan of "generational change," SSG General Manager Kim Sung-yong gave a principled answer, saying, "Generational change does not take place at once," "New and old harmony and balance are important," and "Old people are not unconditionally subject to reorganization." Generational change' should be seen as a justification for external packaging, not the real reason for the replacement of the director. In fact, an SSG official also revealed his complicated intentions, saying, "I think it would be rude to the director if we disclose the decision process one by one to the outside world." SSG argues that "the operation of the baseball team is separate from the group." "Our New World's rule is autonomy," Kim said. He said, "I don't get instructions from the group one by one, but I move with direction on my own," adding, "I hope you don't constantly relate to the group."

On the other hand, there is a strong atmosphere in the baseball world to distrust SSG's claim. A local team leader said, "Such a decision is not at the level that can be made at the club level. "Coach Kim Won-hyung signed a three-year contract for a total of 2.2 billion won, and if the club decided to just throw away the remaining two years of such a large contract and the owner approved it, who would believe it?" Another club management team official also said, "It has already been disclosed that SSG does not operate in that way." He asked back, "Who would believe it if I said 'operate autonomously' when there are words and actions that the owner has said so far?"

A baseball veteran, who I met during the postseason, gave a different opinion. It is pointed out that "it is rather strange to deny the influence of the owner too much." The official said, "Usually, big decisions such as dismissal and appointment of coaches in baseball teams are made by the owner's line. Of course, the club also gives opinions and recommends candidates, but in the end, it is up to the owner to choose. The Doosan Bears, who appointed Lee Seung-yeop last year, said, "But it is hard to believe that the owner of the baseball team, which is the most active outside, insists that there was no order from the owner."

Compliments are the owner's responsibility, criticism is the team's responsibility for the criticism?

The baseball player would have believed, "If the owner does not show up outside, like other clubs, or if he rarely visits the ballpark, he would have believed that he would "operate autonomously." However, SSG is a place where the owner of the team came to the baseball stadium once or twice a week to promote intuition and direct communication with the players. In the process of replacing the general manager last winter, allegations of non-executive influence were raised, and some of them were confirmed to be true. He is a team owner who is more actively involved in the club than anyone else and has been active in the front of the club. It is very strange for such a club to raise their voice, saying, "We don't take orders from the owner." In the baseball world, some say that SSG, which had a hard time last year due to controversy over non-elect influence, is trying to put up its owner only to be praised and set the club as a shield for issues that are expected to be controversial and criticized.

Determined to ruin the baseball team in the drama "Stove League," which aired three years ago, Jaesong Group instructs General Manager Baek Seung-soo (Nam Goong-min) to reduce the total salary of the team to an unconventional level. Baek, who completed the "hitting" annual salary contract as ordered by the group, turned to Kwon Kyung-min (Oh Jung-se), managing director, and said, "I was angry when I signed the contract? It's ridiculously cheap, and only the lower guys are fighting like that.... "I'm even more angry because I won that mud fight," he said, expressing his anger. When Kwon said he would raise the team's salary, he said resentfully, "Think about how red-faced and hurt our pride in the negotiation process because of the 'money' that can be given so spontaneously."

Baek's expression of "instant" shows how "owner baseball," a long-standing problem and essence of Korean baseball, works. It is good for the owner to show interest and love for the baseball team. However, it is best when the owner's interest is literally limited to interest.

먹튀검증