Kim Won-jung’s name began trending again not because of a personal controversy, but because of the August 25, 2026 game between the Lotte Giants and the KIA Tigers and the bullpen-role change announced the following day. In the KBO regular-season game at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field, KIA defeated Lotte 8-5, with Kim Won-jung recorded as the losing pitcher.
Key Change
Lotte brought Kim Won-jung in to protect its lead in the bottom of the ninth. With two outs and the bases loaded, Kim surrendered a go-ahead walk-off grand slam to KIA pinch hitter Lee Ho-yeon. The game turned when KIA produced one decisive rally while Lotte was ahead, and that moment directly fueled the rise in searches related to Kim Won-jung.
According to a Sports Seoul report, Kim Won-jung’s line in the game was 0.2 innings, three hits, one home run, one walk, one strikeout, and four earned runs. Cho Sang-woo was credited with the win. Lee Ho-yeon’s home run was described in multiple reports as a walk-off grand slam, but detailed record-related wording was not consistent across outlets, so it would be premature to expand the claim to whether it was a specific “first in history.”
The confirmed essentials are Lee Ho-yeon’s walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the ninth, KIA’s 8-5 victory, and Kim Won-jung’s loss.
Current Status
Ahead of KIA’s August 26 game, Lotte manager Kim Tae-hyung said, in substance, that Kim Won-jung would be moved from the back end toward earlier innings and that Shota Iimura would be used as the closer. The reported focus was on adjusting Kim Won-jung’s role and deploying Iimura as the closer. There is no confirmed basis for interpreting the change as a first-team removal, release, or disciplinary action.
Manager Kim cited command and stability as the reasons for choosing Shota Iimura. Sports Seoul reported Iimura’s August 2026 statistics as seven games, 7.1 innings, one win, four holds, and a 2.45 ERA. The change can therefore be understood as an adjustment to Lotte’s criteria for managing the final inning of the bullpen following the result of one game.
However, the confirmed information is based on the manager’s comments before the August 26 game. It cannot be stated with certainty that Iimura’s closer role was fixed for the remainder of the season, and Kim Won-jung’s precise usage will need to be confirmed through subsequent game management.
Impact
The most important point in this bullpen change is that Lotte’s approach to managing its closer has shifted. Kim Won-jung, who had been the team’s closer, became the subject of a role adjustment after allowing four runs in 0.2 innings against KIA, while Iimura was presented as the new closer candidate because of his command and stability.
Looking only at the result, KIA turned a 5-4 deficit into an 8-5 victory with Lee Ho-yeon’s grand slam in the bottom of the ninth. The game drew attention not simply as a win or loss, but as an example of a change in Lotte’s bullpen management that followed immediately. Kim Won-jung’s long-term evaluation or outlook for the season should not be determined from this game and the manager’s comments alone; his subsequent role and appearances also need to be considered.
What to Watch Next
The points to monitor are who actually handles the final inning in the next game, in what situations Kim Won-jung appears, and whether Shota Iimura continues in the role. In particular, the August 26 comments described an operating plan disclosed before that day’s game, so the current status should be checked again against any subsequent official team announcement or game-by-game records.
In summary, Kim Won-jung surrendered a walk-off grand slam to Lee Ho-yeon with two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth against KIA on August 25, and Lotte lost 8-5. The following day, manager Kim Tae-hyung indicated that Shota Iimura would be used as the new closer because of his command and stability. The change confirmed so far is limited to this bullpen-role adjustment; whether it becomes permanent and what Kim Won-jung’s new role will be must be confirmed through subsequent game usage.