KIA Tigers
| Kia Tigers | |||||
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| KIA 타이거즈 | |||||
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| League | KBO League (1982–present) | ||||
| Location | Gwangju, South Korea | ||||
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| Year established | 1982 | ||||
| Nickname(s) | Tigers | ||||
| League championships | (6): 1988, 1991, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2009 | ||||
| Korean Series championships | (10): 1983, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2009 | ||||
| Former name(s) | Haitai Tigers (1982–2001) | ||||
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| Colors | Red, black and white |
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| Retired numbers | 7, 18 | ||||
| Ownership | Kia Motors | ||||
| Manager | Kim Ki-tae | ||||
| General Manager | Seo Young-jong | ||||
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Kia Tigers (Korean: 기아 타이거즈) is a Korean professional baseball team founded in 1982 and based in the southwestern city of Gwangju. The Tigers are a member team of the KBO League and the most successful team in Korean baseball having won the national championship, the Korean Series, ten times, with a perfect 10-0 series record and a 40-12-2 game record.
After the success of the 1980s and 1990s, the fortunes of the team began to turn, resulting in them finishing bottom of the league for the first time in 2005, and again in 2007. In 2009, However, Kia Tigers won the 2009 KBO season and 2009 Korean Series.
They were previously known as the Haitai Tigers (해태 타이거즈). Their home stadium is Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in Gwangju.
Haitai Tigers was third professional baseball team to be created in South Korea, next to OB Bears and MBC Chungyong, founded on January 30 of 1982 with 14 players. Kim Dong-yeob, the first manager of the team was fired after just one month, and Jo Chang-soo took over his position and led the team to 38 wins 42 losses. Due to the lack of position players, many players in the league both pitched and batted. Kim Sung-han of the Tigers set a record of ten wins and highest RBI the first year.
Haitai Tigers hired Kim Eung-ryong as manager, who studied baseball in the United States, eventually led the team to its first victory in 1983. The Tigers won the Korean Series with four wins and one tie-game against the MBC Chungyong (currently LG Twins). Although the team did not make it to the playoffs for the next two years, it set the foundation for the golden years to come by signing in future megastars Lee Soon-chul, Sun Dong-yeol and Kim Sung-han. Bang Soo-won pitched the first no-hit-no-run game in Korean baseball history in 1984 against the Sammi Superstars.
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Wikipedia