DAEJEON — Ryu Ji-hyun, 55, who has been named the 15th manager of the Hanwha Eagles, said in his first remarks that he would "build a team that lets fans take pride in calling Hanwha the strongest."
Hanwha held Ryu's inauguration ceremony and a session with reporters at Hanwha Life Ballpark in Daejeon on the 16th. Park Jong-tae, chief executive of the Hanwha Eagles, personally handed Ryu an orange uniform and cap bearing the number 76, marking the start of the new manager's tenure. New general manager Seok Jang-hyun, along with Ryu Hyun-jin and Chae Eun-sung, who attended on behalf of the players, presented flower bouquets.
Ryu said his role was "to build a structure that can compete for the championship every year, not a team that flashes for a single season," adding that "performance and player development have to move together for a team to stay strong."
"Daejeon is the city where passion for baseball runs hottest," he said. "We will answer the fans' expectations with results."
Ryu joined the LG Twins in 1994 and wore only the Twins uniform for more than 30 years as a player, coach and manager. He will now take the field for a full season in a different uniform for the first time.
After serving as LG manager in 2021 and 2022 and then stepping down, he moved to the national team. He was head coach of the national squad in 2023 and 2024 and managed the team in 2025 and 2026.
He proved his leadership by taking South Korea to the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic in March this year, the country's first appearance at that stage in 17 years, and by leading the team to a fifth consecutive title at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. Those results in international competition are seen as the springboard for his return to the professional ranks.
With Ryu's appointment, Hanwha is expected to accelerate work on assembling its coaching staff and strengthening its roster.