Former manager who led OB Bears to 1st KBO championship title dies

Former manager who led OB Bears to 1st KBO championship title dies

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The family of Kim Young-deok, a former manager who led the OB Bears to the championship title in the first year of Korea's professional baseball league, announced his death at the age of 87, Saturday.

Kim's health had deteriorated over the past few years, and he had been recently hospitalized after feeling dizzy, his family said, adding he died without the exact cause of the symptom being found.

Born in Japan in 1936, Kim was a pitcher for the Nankai Hawks in the 스포츠 Japanese professional league from 1956-63, before coming to Korea in 1964 and joining a semi-professional league here.

When South Korea launched its six-team professional baseball league in 1982, he was appointed as manager of the OB Bears and led the team to win the championship title that year.

The OB Bears was renamed the Doosan Bears in 1999, after a change in ownership