The 10 owners of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) clubs unanimously approved Koo-youn Heo as the 24th Commissioner. A longtime baseball commentator, Heo was put up for the position on 11th March. He received the confirmation on the day of his 71st birthday.
Heo will serve until the end of 2023, covering the remainder of the term of his predecessor, Ji-taik Chung, who resigned earlier this year, citing health problems. Chung served for little more than one year.
KBO announced that the inauguration ceremony is scheduled for Tuesday, 29 March, the day after the league's opening.
Heo told the Yonhap news agency that he hopes to make 2022 "a turning point" for Korean baseball. "It's the commissioner's job to solve difficult problems, and I hope to be able to highlight some of the positive sides of Korean baseball," he said. "The commissioner has to balance the interests of fans, clubs and players to help develop the league. And it's never easy to find a compromise when every party has its own interest. But first and foremost, I'd like to ask the teams and players to put their fans above all else. Players have to be professional on the field, and teams have to serve their fans well."
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Heo is the first former player to serve as KBO Commissioner. He played at the semipro level in the 1970s and retired before the founding of KBO.
In 1982 he made his first experience as a colour commentator for local broadcaster MBC.
Heo served as KBO's Chengbo Pintos manager in 1985. The club, based in Incheon, changed its name to Taepyeongyang Dolphins in 1988 and became the Hyundai Unicorns in 1995. The Unicorns moved from Incheon to Suwon in 1999.
After serving as the bench coach of the Lotte Giants in 1987, he moved to North America and worked as a minor league roving instructor for the Toronto Blue Jays.
He returned to the commentator's booth in 1991 and became one of the most recognizable voices in Korean baseball.
Since 2005, Heo has consulted KBO on rules and development.
