His other pitches included a high 70s slider with a sharp horizontal break, a mid 80s forkball, and a rarely used 60 mph (97 km/h) slow-curveball.

Lim made his pro debut in 1995 with the Haitai Tigers in Korea Baseball Organization, and was regularly picked for the South Korean baseball team as a relief pitcher since the 1998 Asian Games, and won the bronze medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics and two Asian Game gold medals in 1998 and 2002.

Though predominantly known as a closer, Lim was converted to a starting pitcher in 2001, and spent three years as the Samsung Lions' starter before returning to the bullpen in 2004.

There was interest from Major League squads,[citation needed] but Lim decided to stay in South Korea.

He was sent down to the reserve squad after his ERA rose to 1.84 in a short stint, but he was brought back to strengthen Yakult's weak bullpen, which was responsible for its recent losses.