Ssangbangwool Raiders
Ssangbangwool Raiders Baseball Club (Korean: 쌍방울 레이더스 야구단) was a Korea Professional Baseball team founded in 1990 and dissolved upon bankruptcy of the team's owner in 1999. They were based in the North Jeolla Province and were members of the Korea Baseball Organization. A notoriously unsuccessful team, they only made the playoffs twice in their nine-year KBO history, losing both times, never making it to the Korean Series.
| Ssangbangwool Raiders | |
|---|---|
| 쌍방울 레이더스 | |
 | |
| Information | |
| League | KBO League (1990–1999) |
| Location | North Jeolla Province, South Korea |
| Ballpark | Jeonju Baseball Stadium (1990–1999) |
| Year established | March 15, 1990 |
| Year folded | February 12, 2000 |
| League championships | None |
| Colors | Yellow and black |
| Ownership | Ssangbangwool Group |
The two most notable players who spent considerable time with the Raiders were designated hitter Kim Ki-tai, who won a home run title in 1994 and a batting title in 1997 (as well as being a three-time KBO League Golden Glove Award-winner with the Raiders), and Park Kyung-oan, considered by many to be one of the best catchers in Korean baseball history.
History
The Raiders played the 1990 season in the KBO Futures League, South Korea's second level of baseball. The team joined the KBO in 1991.
On April 30, 1993, Raiders pitcher Kim Won-hyeong threw a no-hitter, defeating the OB Bears 3–0 at Jeonju Baseball Stadium. At age 20, Kim was the youngest KBO pitcher to ever throw a no-hitter.[1]
Ssangbangwool suffered through a 17-game losing streak in 1999 on their way to a record of 28-97-7 and a winning percentage of .224, one of the worst seasons in KBO history. The Raiders were dissolved after the '99 season because of the bankruptcy of the Ssangbangwool Group, the team's owner. The franchise was subsumed by the KBO, which then awarded a new franchise to the SK conglomerate. The new franchise was named the SK Wyverns and they started play in 2000. The Raiders and the Wyverns have no historical links, although the new team consisted mostly of former Raiders players.
Season-by-season records
| Season | Team Name | Finish | Wins | Losses | Ties | Win% | Postseason | Awards | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Ssangbangwool Raiders | 7th | 52 | 71 | 3 | .425 | Did not qualify | Cho Kyu-je (P) (Rookie of the Year) |
Kim In-sik |
| 1992 | 8th | 41 | 84 | 1 | .329 | Did not qualify | Kim Ki-tai (DH) (Golden Glove Award) | ||
| 1993 | 7th | 43 | 78 | 5 | .361 | Did not qualify | Kim Gwang-rim (OF), Kim Ki-tai (DH) (Golden Glove Award) |
Shin Yong-kyun | |
| 1994 | 8th | 47 | 74 | 5 | .393 | Did not qualify | Pak No-jun (OF), Kim Ki-tai (DH) (Golden Glove Award) |
Han Dong-hwa | |
| 1995 | 8th | 45 | 78 | 3 | .369 | Did not qualify | Kim Gwang-rim (OF) (Golden Glove Award) |
Han Dong-hwa (24 games) Kim Woo-yeol (102 games)[2] | |
| 1996 | 3rd | 70 | 54 | 2 | .563 | Lost Playoffs to the Hyundai Unicorns (2-3) | Park Kyung-oan (C) (Golden Glove Award) |
Kim Sung-keun | |
| 1997 | 3rd | 71 | 53 | 2 | .571 | Lost Semi-Playoffs to the Samsung Lions (1-2) | Choe Tae-won (2B) (Golden Glove Award) | ||
| 1998 | 6th | 58 | 66 | 2 | .468 | Did not qualify | |||
| 1999 | 4th (Magic League) | 28 | 97 | 7 | .224 | Did not qualify | Kim Sung-keun Kim Joon-hwan | ||
| Overall record | 455 | 665 | 30 | .409 | |||||
References
- "Korea Baseball Organization no-hitters," No-hitters.com. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
- Yonhap. "Baseball club Hanwha Eagles to keep interim manager for remainder of '17," The Korea Herald (Jun 13, 2017).