Lotte shortstop brutal death? Even treasure Lee Ho-joon collapsed after being hit by a headshot → Transfer to hospital by stretcher + ambulance...It's the second time this year since Jeon Min-jae

May 11, 2025

A game between the Kiwoom Heroes and the Lotte Giants at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on the 30th. Lotte Lee Ho-joon is running toward third base. Gocheok = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2025.04.30/

Lotte shortstop Lee Ho-joon is being transported in an ambulance after being hit by a headshot dune. Reporter Kim Young-rok

A game between the Kiwoom Heroes and the Lotte Giants at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on the 30th. Lotte Lee Ho-joon is cheering. Gocheok = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2025.04.30/

Lotte Giants became the victim of 'Headshot' again. He is the main shortstop again this time. The 21-year-old young infielder rolled around on the ground.

Suwon KT Wiz Park on the 11th. Lotte's Lee Ho-joon (21) collapsed after being hit by a pitch on the head during the second game of the doubleheader against KT Wiz and the game at the top of the fourth inning when Lotte was trailing 0-1.

With two outs and runners on the first and second bases, KT starter Oh Won-seok's first pitch and 130km slider hit the back of Lee Ho-joon's head.

Lee Ho-joon was unable to get up from his seat while collapsing, and an ambulance entered the ground. Lee Ho-joon was lifted up on a stretcher and placed in an ambulance, and transferred to nearby Suwon Hwahong Hospital. It is expected to be examined immediately.

For Lotte, it was only 13 days after Jeon Min-jae collapsed in the Gocheok Kiwoom Heroes match on the 29th of last month. At that time, Jeon Min-jae was hit in the head by Kiwoom pitcher Yang Ji-yul's fastball, so Yang Ji-yul was immediately sent off. On the other hand, in the case of Oh Won-seok, he was not replaced as it was a breaking ball and continued pitching on the mound.

The scene was filled with booing and shouting from Lotte fans when even treasure Lee Ho-joon, who filled the spot well despite Jeon Min-jae's sudden injury, collapsed with a headshot. Oh Won-seok came down from the mound feeling sorry and examined Lee Ho-joon's condition, and even watched Lee Ho-joon being transferred with his hands together, but it was difficult to cool down the anger of fans who filled the scene.

A game between the Kiwoom Heroes and the Lotte Giants at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on the 30th. Lotte Lee Ho-joon is defending. Gocheok = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2025.04.30/

On the third base side, loud boos poured out to make it difficult to continue the game, while the KT home cheering section on the first base rang out to cheer for Oh Won-seok. Oh Won-seok allowed a 1-1 tie with a walk to push in the ensuing crisis, but went down the mound without additional runs.

Lee Ho-joon is a young infielder who was drafted in the third round (23rd overall) of the rookie draft last year and wore a Lotte uniform. Prior to the game, he had a batting average of 259 with six RBIs and an on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) of 0.791.

While quickly filling the spot of Jeon Min-jae, who was out due to injury, he also showed off his unexpectedly sharp hit. With his shrewd footwork and strong shoulders, he even received praise from head coach Kim Tae-hyung, saying, `Lee Ho-joon is the best in our team at least one defense.'

Lotte had a 6-1 complete victory in the first game of the doubleheader earlier, and was trailing 0-1 in the second game, but faced the reality of the main shortstop collapsing at a time when it was just getting on the flow. Instead of Lee Ho-joon, Park Seung-wook was put in as a shortstop.

This article was translated by Naver AI translator.