In 1983, Haitai hired Kim Eung-ryong as manager, who had studied baseball in the United States (and had managed Haitai's amateur baseball team from 1964 to 1981). He eventually led the team to its first championship in 1983. The Tigers won the Korean Series 4–0–1 against MBC Chungyong. 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 stars Lee Soon-chul, Sun Dong-yeol, and Kim Seong-han.