'How could this be?' Lotte struck by another lightning bolt of bad news: 'Requires 2–3 weeks for rehabilitation' → How can they return in just three days... Misfortune like this is unparalleled. [Busan Field Report]

*This content was translated by AI.

A shocking piece of news has reached the Lotte Giants.

Outfielder Jang Du-seong (27), who had recently returned from injury, suffered an unexpected new injury and was forced to leave the lineup once again.

Lotte is scheduled to play a 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League regular-season home game against the KIA Tigers at Busan Sajik Baseball Stadium on the 8th at 6:30 p.m.

The day before (the 7th), Lotte secured a decisive 10–2 victory over KIA in the first of three final games of the first half at the same venue.

With this win, Lotte improved to 37 wins, 2 draws, and 44 losses, maintaining eighth place in the league. They trail seventh-place NC Dinos by 2.5 games and have closed the gap to fifth-place Doosan Bears to just four games.

However, Lotte has now faced another injury setback. A Lotte official stated, "Jang Du-seong was hit in the left calf while attempting a swing-and-miss strikeout in the fourth inning of yesterday's game. He has been removed from the first-division roster due to an injury to the inner muscle of his left calf and is expected to require approximately two to three weeks for rehabilitation." Jang Du-seong was substituted out for Kim Dong-hyeok before defensive play began in the top of the fifth inning after striking out swinging in the fourth.

Shin Yun-hoo has been called up from the minor league to fill Jang's vacant spot on the first-division roster.

Jang Du-seong had previously been removed from the first-division roster ahead of the Kiwoom Heroes game at Gocheok Dome on the 19th due to a contusion injury, requiring protection and management. After focusing on recovery, he was called up to the first division on the 5th, only to be sidelined again just three days later.

Meanwhile, Lotte set its starting lineup for today's game as follows: Hwang Seong-bin (center field), Ko Seung-min (first base), Reyes (left field), Han Dong-hee (designated hitter), Park Chan-hyung (third base), Jeon Min-jae (shortstop), Han Tae-yang (second base), Son Ho-young (right field), and Son Seong-bin (catcher). The starting pitcher is Na Gyun-an.

Facing Lotte, KIA arranged its starting lineup as follows: Park Jae-hyun (left field), Kim Ho-ryeong (center field), Kim Do-young (third base), Na Sung-beom (right field), Castro (first base), Han Jun-su (designated hitter), Kim Sun-bin (second base), Ju Hyo-sang (catcher), and Kim Gyu-seong (shortstop). The starting pitcher is James Nail. Instead of registering Lee Tae-yang, Lotte removed Kim Tae-hyung from the roster.

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*This content was translated by AI.