Korean star outfielder Jung-hoo Lee, who is slated to make the leap to Major League Baseball this winter, will miss the remainder of the regular season after suffering a fractured ankle, according to Jeeho Yoo of Yonhap News Agency.
Lee, a member of the Kiwoom Heroes of the Korea Baseball Organization, will celebrate his 25th birthday in August. In 85 games this season, he batted .319/.407/.456 with six home runs, 45 RBI, six stolen bases (on nine attempts), and 26 more walks than strikeouts. For his career, he's hit .340/.407/.491.
CBS Sports noted that Lee was one of four potential future big-league players on display back during March's World Baseball Classic. Here's part of what we wrote at the time:
MLB front offices are always skeptical about how KBO hitters will fare against better pitchers. (KBO is regarded as the world's third best league, behind MLB and NPB.) Lee ranks fourth because he's unlikely to evade that line of scrutiny. His boosters nevertheless envision him becoming a starting center fielder in MLB. Lee homered more times last season (23) than he had the previous two years combined (22), but his above-average contact chops are the safest component of his lefty bat. He's regarded as a plus runner and defender, a combination that should earn him a wider berth at the plate than the average bear. Lee may require some time to adjust to MLB (Kim, for example, raised his OPS 86 points in his second year stateside), so his secondary value would have to keep him afloat during his acclimation period.
The Heroes had confirmed in January that they intended to "post" Lee for MLB consideration after this season. "After some internal discussions, we agreed to respect the player's intent to play in Major League Baseball," the team said in a statement. "We will provide whatever support necessary for the player."
Once the Heroes officially post Lee, MLB teams will have 30 days to reach an agreement with him. The team that signs Lee will then have to pay a fee to the Heroes as part of the arrangement, with the exact total hinging on how much his contract ends up being worth. Here's a breakdown of how that works:
- Contract worth less than $25 million: 20% of contract value
- Contract worth $25 million to $50 million: $5 million plus 17.5% of amount over $25 million
- Contract worth more than $50 million: $9.275 million plus 15% of amount over $50 million
For reference, San Diego Padres infielder Ha-Seong Kim signed a four-year pact worth $28 million when he came over prior to the 2021 season.