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28-620: The Unicorns were dissolved after the 2007 season. Hyundai Unicorns' players and staff were signed in a takeover deal and became the Heroes Baseball Club . The Unicorns and the Heroes have no historical links, although the new team consisted mostly of former Unicorns players. The franchise was founded in 1982 as one of the original six teams in the Korea Baseball Organization . Owned by Sammi Steel Co., Ltd.,

56-433: A 5 trillion won annual loss for the company. Creditor banks, many of them under government control at the time, intervened to provide assistance. In 2001, Hyundai Electronics rebranded as Hynix Semiconductor, a portmanteau of "high" and "electronics". Alongside this change, Hynix began selling or spinning off business units to recover from a cash squeeze. Hynix separated several business units, including Hyundai Curitel,

84-415: A KBO League record), with a 2.34 ERA. He won a still-league record 30 games, lost 16, and saved an additional six games. He threw 192-2/3 more innings and allowed 155 more hits than the runner-up in those categories. Jang's 30 wins and 6 saves made up more than 69% of the team's 52 wins that year; for his efforts, he was given the 1983 KBO League Golden Glove Award in pitching. The 1985 Superstars team lost

112-730: A South Korean professional baseball team based in Seoul . They are a member of the KBO League . The Heroes play their home games at Gocheok Sky Dome in Gocheok-dong , a neighborhood located in the southwestern part of Seoul. The Heroes mascot is Teokdori ( 턱돌이 ; Mr. Jaw). In 2014, the Futures League squad changed its name to Hwaseong Heroes ( 화성 히어로즈 ), differentiating from the first string. In 2019, Hwaseong Heroes renamed as Goyang Heroes ( 고양 히어로즈 ). The franchise

140-484: A U.S.-based disk-drive manufacturer. GoldStar , which later became LG Electronics , entered the semiconductor business by acquiring a small company from Taihan Electric Wire in 1979. The company was subsequently renamed GoldStar Semiconductor. LG Semicon was established as Goldstar Electron in 1983 by merging the semiconductor operations of Goldstar Electronics and Goldstar Semiconductors. In 1990, Goldstar Electron commenced operations at Cheongju Plant I, followed by

168-411: A foundry for foreign firms under OEM agreements was successful. The OEM agreements between General Instruments and Texas Instruments were helpful to Hyundai, which was facing technological and financial difficulties. By 1992, Hyundai had become the world's ninth DRAM manufacturer, and by 1995, it ranked among the world's top 20 semiconductor manufacturing companies. In 1996, Hyundai acquired Maxtor ,

196-582: A league-record 18 games in a row between 31 March and 29 April. The team was sold to Chungbo on 29 June of that year, and between the two 1985 half-seasons, was renamed the Chungbo Pintos. In 1988, the team was sold again to Pacific Chemicals (now Amore Pacific Group ), and renamed as Pacific Dolphins. In 1989 the franchise made the playoffs for the first time, eventually losing to the Haitai Tigers . The 1993 squad at one point lost 15 games in

224-527: A mobile phone manufacturer; Hyundai SysComm, a CDMA mobile communication chip maker; Hyundai Autonet, a car navigation system producer; ImageQuest, a flat panel display company; and its TFT-LCD unit, among others. The divestiture was part of a bailout plan requested by the major creditor, Korea Development Bank , to provide fresh funds to the insolvent semiconductor maker. In 2003, Hyundai Group affiliates, including Hyundai Merchant Marine , Hyundai Heavy Industries , Hyundai Elevator , and Chung Mong-hun ,

252-512: A new team called Woori Heroes. Unlike other clubs in the KBO League, which are controlled by chaebol companies , the Heroes are owned by a group of individuals led by Lee Chang-suk, rather than being owned by their title sponsor. During the 2008 season, Woori Tobacco Company terminated their naming sponsor agreement, citing that the Heroes had not yet paid the full KBO founding fee, forcing the team to trade most of its star players for money. For

280-650: A row, finishing the season 34–82–10, with a winning percentage of .310. In 1994, the team finished second in the KBO, making it all the way to the franchise's first Korean Series , where they were defeated by the LG Twins four games to none. After the 1995 KBO season, due to financial difficulties, the team was sold again, this time to the Hynix Semiconductor branch of the Hyundai Group , and renamed

308-405: A satisfactory yield rate. In 1985, Hyundai altered its strategy for DRAM manufacturing by subcontracting from foreign firms and importing their chip designs, as it had lost time developing its own chips. Hyundai's DRAM chip, produced by importing Vitelic Corporation 's design and technology, again failed in mass production due to a low yield rate. Hyundai's approach to manufacturing memory chips as

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336-920: Is a South Korean supplier of dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) chips and flash memory chips. SK Hynix is one of the world's largest semiconductor vendors. Founded as Hyundai Electronics in 1983, SK Hynix was integrated into the SK Group in 2012 following a series of mergers, acquisitions, and restructuring efforts. After being incorporated into the SK Group, SK Hynix became a major affiliate alongside SK Innovation and SK Telecom . The company's major customers include Microsoft , Apple , Asus , Dell , MSI , HP Inc. , and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (formerly Hewlett-Packard ). Other products that use Hynix memory include DVD players , cellular phones , set-top boxes , personal digital assistants , networking equipment, and hard disk drives . Hyundai Electronics

364-700: The KBO League Most Valuable Player Award . The Unicorns finished in first place in 2003 and 2004, and won the Korean Series both times, defeating the SK Wyverns and Samsung Lions , respectively. Those teams were led offensively by Shim Jeong-soo and American import Cliff Brumbaugh . In 2003 Shim had a great season, hitting .335 with 53 home runs (second all-time) and 142 RBI, with a then-record OPS of 1.197 (still second all-time). In 2004 Brumbaugh came close to winning

392-724: The Hyundai Unicorns. Hyundai had previously sponsored the Hyundai Phoenix of the Korea Baseball Association amateur league, and due to the business relationship between the Phoenix and the newly named Unicorns, five players on the Phoenix roster moved to the Unicorns. In 1996, the team hired Kim Jae-bak as manager, who would eventually guide them to four championships. The Unicorns made it to

420-531: The KBO League Triple Crown with a .343 batting average (tops in the league), 33 home runs (second), and 105 RBI (third). Despite the team's strong record during these years, from 2001 to 2007 the Unicorns faced financial challenges due to the majority owner, Hynix Semiconductor , being in court protection, as well as the team's low attendances. Through these years the Unicorns had to rely on financial assistance from other Hyundai affiliates. At

448-621: The Korean Series in their first year under Kim, but lost again, this time to the Tigers. 1998 was a banner year for the Unicorns, as they finished first in the KBO and finally won the Korean Series, against the LG Twins, four games to two. The Unicorns' Chung Min-tae was one of the top pitchers in the KBO in the period from 1998 to 2003, as he won the KBO League Golden Glove Award three times during that span. Chung led

476-551: The bidding. In July 2011, SK Telecom , the nation's largest telecommunication company, and STX Group officially entered the bid. STX dropped its deal in September 2011, leaving SK Telecom as the sole bidder. In the end, SK acquired Hynix for US$ 3 billion in February 2012. As Hynix was incorporated into SK Group , its name was changed to SK Hynix. In 2021, Hynix acquired Intel 's NAND business for $ 9 billion, resulting in

504-722: The chairman of Hyundai Asan, consented to forfeit their voting rights and sell their stakes in Hynix. Hynix was then formally spun-off from the Hyundai Group in August 2003. The Hynix creditors, including Korea Exchange Bank , Woori Bank , Shinhan Bank and Korea Finance Corporation , attempted to sell their stake in Hynix several times but failed. Korean companies such as Hyosung , Dongbu CNI , and former stakeholders, including Hyundai Heavy Industries and LG, were considered potential bidders but were either denied or withdrew from

532-493: The completion of Cheongju Plant II in 1994. The company underwent a name change to LG Semicon in 1995. LG Semicon operated from three sites, including Seoul, Cheongju , and Gumi . During the 1997 Asian financial crisis , the South Korean government initiated the restructuring of the nation's five major conglomerates, including their semiconductor businesses. Among five chaebols , Samsung, LG, and Hyundai were engaged in

560-497: The end of the 2006 season, the team was almost sold to Korea's National Agricultural Cooperative Federation , but the sale fell through. The team was dissolved in January 2008. After that, Seattle-based Centennial Investments signed Hyundai Unicorns' players and staff in a takeover deal, and founded the Heroes Baseball Club , moving the team to Seoul . Kiwoom Heroes The Kiwoom Heroes ( Korean :  키움 히어로즈 ) are

588-488: The league in victories in three separate years — 1999, 2000, and 2003 — topping 20 victories in 1999. In 2000, the team relocated from Incheon to Suwon . That year, the Unicorns finished first in the Dream League division, and again won the Korean Series, defeating Doosan Bears four games to three. In 2000, catcher Park Kyung-oan had arguably the best season of his career, hitting .282 with 40 home runs, and winning

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616-555: The remainder of the 2008 season and into the 2009 season, the team used only "Heroes" as their name. On 8 February 2010, naming rights were sold to Nexen Tire . On 6 November 2018, naming rights were sold to Kiwoom Securities . The Kiwoom Heroes made it to the Korean Series in their first year, but lost to the Doosan Bears to finish second. Hynix Semiconductor SK Hynix Inc. ( Korean : 에스케이하이닉스 주식회사 )

644-444: The semiconductor business. Samsung was exempt from the restructuring due to its competitive position in the global market. However, LG and Hyundai were pressured by the government to merge, as both companies faced significant losses during the semiconductor recession of early 1996. In 1998, Hyundai Electronics acquired LG Semicon for US$ 2.1 billion, positioning itself in direct competition with Micron Technology . Subsequently, LG Semicon

672-563: The team was called the Sammi Superstars, and was based in Incheon . The 1983 team featured one of the most remarkable pitching seasons in modern history. Japanese import Hiroaki Fukushi , dubbed "Jang Myeong-bu" in the KBO League, pitched in 60 of the team's 100 games, completing a record 36 of them, with five shutouts. He threw 427-1/3 innings, facing 1,712 batters, allowing 388 hits, walking 106, and striking out 220 (at that point

700-438: Was founded in 1983 by Chung Ju-yung , the founder of Hyundai Group . In the early 1980s, Chung recognized the growing importance of electronics in the automobile industry, one of Hyundai's primary business areas. He saw the potential for Hyundai to expand beyond its core operations in automobiles, shipbuilding, and heavy industries and wanted to establish a presence in the promising electronics industry. The company's primary focus

728-434: Was on semiconductor production and industrial electronics. Hyundai had to pay a very high entry price to set up an efficient production system and to stabilize the yield rate compared to its rival Samsung, who at least had prior experience in semiconductor manufacturing. Hyundai's decision to produce SRAMs was later proven to be a mistake, as the technological sophistication of SRAMs made it difficult for Hyundai to achieve

756-658: Was originally known as the Sammi SuperStars and had subsequent incarnations as the Chungbo Pintos and Pacific Dolphins. The team was renamed the Hyundai Unicorns after being sold to Hyundai in 1996, and was relocated from Incheon to Suwon . The Unicorns won the KBO championship four times (1998, 2000, 2003 and 2004). In January 2008, the team was disbanded. After that, Centennial Investments formed

784-468: Was rebranded as Hyundai Semiconductor and later merged with Hyundai Electronics. Although the South Korean government aimed to merge the two companies to alleviate the supply glut in the global market, competition in the semiconductor industry had intensified. Hyundai faced near collapse during the chip industry's downturn in 2001, when global memory chip prices dropped by 80 percent, resulting in

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