Royals Hire New Manager

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- The Kansas City Royals have hired Trey Hillman as their new manager.<br/><br/>The 44-year-old Hillman takes over a team that hasn't been to the playoffs since winning the 1985

Friday, October 19th 2007, 3:03 pm

By: News On 6

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- The Kansas City Royals have hired Trey Hillman as their new manager.

The 44-year-old Hillman takes over a team that hasn't been to the playoffs since winning the 1985 World Series.

Trey Hillman is currently managing the Nippon Ham Fighters in the Japan Series. He's managed five years in Japan after managing 12 seasons in the New York Yankees organization. He'll be introduced at a Monday news conference.

Hillman replaces Buddy Bell, who announced in August he'd step down after the season.

The Royals finished 69-and-93, last in the AL Central for the fourth straight year.