Wendell Kim

Wendell Kealohepauloe Kim
(W.K.)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 5", Weight 160 lb.
• School Cal Poly Pomona
• High School Banning High School

• Born March 9, 1950 in Honolulu, HI USA
• Died February 15, 2015 in Arizona USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Wendell Kim has been a coach for several major league clubs and managed several teams in the minors.

After managing in the San Francisco Giants organization from 1981 to 1988, he was a Giants coach from 1989 to 1996. He was then a member of the Boston Red Sox staff from 1997 to 2000. After spending a year as skipper of the Indianapolis Indians, he returned to the majors as a Montreal Expos coach in 2002 and was a member of the Chicago Cubs staff the following two seasons.

While serving as third base coach for the Cubs, Kim was a frequent target of boos from fans as a disproportionately high percentage of the runners he sent home were thrown out at the plate. Some derisively nicknamed him "Wavin' Wendell" for his overly aggressive style. He had a similar reputation as the third base coach for the Red Sox.

Kim and his wife retired to Arizona in 2005. Suffering from short term memory loss, tests eventually determined that Kim had early onset Alzheimer's disease. He had to go to a facility specialized in patients suffering from memory loss and after a while was no longer able to communicate with friends or relatives. He passed away in 2015 at the age of 64.

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs
1981	Clinton Giants	Midwest League	52-80	8th	San Francisco Giants
1982	Clinton Giants	Midwest League	63-75	7th (t)	San Francisco Giants
1983	Fresno Giants	California League	78-62	3rd	San Francisco Giants
1984	Fresno Giants	California League	82-58	3rd	San Francisco Giants	Lost in 1st round
1985	Fresno Giants	California League	84-62	2nd	San Francisco Giants	League Champs
1986	Shreveport Captains	Texas League	80-56	2nd	San Francisco Giants	Lost in 1st round
1987	Phoenix Firebirds	Pacific Coast League	77-67	4th	San Francisco Giants
1988	Phoenix Firebirds	Pacific Coast League	67-76	7th	San Francisco Giants
2001	Indianapolis Indians	International League	66-78	11th	Milwaukee Brewers
2005	GCL Nationals	Gulf Coast League	21-32	12th	Washington Nationals

Related Sites

• WK's Coach's Box