*This content was translated by AI.
The coach and junior, who I loved so much, became a star in the sky. Lotte Giants manager Kim Tae-hyung (59) couldn't speak easily because of his sadness.
Kim Min-jae, general coach of Lotte Dream Team, passed away on the 14th. He was 53. He eventually passed away after battling bile duct cancer.
Coach Kim Tae-hyung met with reporters ahead of his departure from Taiwan's Tainan 1st spring camp through Incheon International Airport on the 27th and said, "I didn't feel well. It's been getting worse since last fall, he said. "I think I've been on medication for two years."
Coach Kim, who has been active for 19 seasons, began his leadership career in 2009 after retirement, served as a coach under then Doosan Bears coach Kim Tae-hyung in November 2018, and later left for the SK Wyverns (SSG predecessor) from November 2020, but before the 2024 season, Kim Tae-hyung will again be the head coach of his new team, Lotte.
However, from the beginning, news like a bolt from the blue came. During the Guam spring camp in January 2024, he showed jaundice symptoms and returned home midway through the process, and was examined at a hospital, where he was diagnosed with bile duct cancer. Since then, he has devoted himself to chemotherapy and returned to the field, receiving enthusiastic support from baseball fans.
Last year, he played as a bench coach, but after the end of the season, he transformed into a general coach of the Dream Team, which is responsible for fostering promising players. There was consideration from head coach Kim Tae-hyung. "I keep saying I'm okay, I'm okay, but my face color was very different every day when I saw it," he said. "Watching baseball in the first team is stressful in itself, even though he endured it." So I got off," he explained.
He was the deceased who intended to endure in the field somehow, but he could not endure only with his will. Starting with last year's wrap-up camp, the condition worsened rapidly. Coach Kim said, "I was in a final training session and received reports that 'I'm not in a state of standing on the playground because I'm in such a bad condition right now' and 'I'd better send it home'." They say it's okay if I call them. He said, 'It's okay, it's okay,' and he still couldn't hide his sorrow.
Coach Kim, who had been abroad, heard from the club that coach Kim's illness worsened rapidly. I didn't even have time to prepare my mind. The next day, I received a call from coach Cho Won-woo and heard the unfortunate news.
When yesterday's colleagues, seniors, and juniors die one by one, it is inevitable that it is difficult to comfort them easily. Head coach Kim could not easily say, "Everyone of my colleagues is heartbroken when something happens."
The role of the deceased will be taken over by senior coach Cho Won-woo, who is from the same Busan, played together at SK and Hanwha Eagles, and also served as a leader in Doosan, Lotte, and SSG. It is expected that he will continue to replace the will of the deceased, who wanted to remain in the ballpark until the end, treating baseball more sincerely than anyone else despite suffering from illness.
<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>
*This content was translated by AI.
