[인터뷰] Daeho Lee Confession “Do you know what my dream is? It’s Lotte’s championship”

[일요신문] “It’s not about the salary or the length of the contract, but I’m curious what the Lotte team thinks of Daeho Lee. I don’t think I don’t care about anything else if that mind is delivered. If I don’t feel that feeling, it really hurts.”

I met Lee Dae-ho in Busan on the afternoon of January 19th. I am not currently affiliated with the FA (free contract) status. But as everyone knows, he wants to play this season as a Lotte Giants player. The club also needs Lee Dae-ho. The problem is the negotiation process. According to Lee Dae-ho, the first round of negotiations with the Lotte club was recently held. A specific story could not have come and gone at the first meeting. They just ended the exploration battle by sharing their thoughts. The second round of negotiations will be held soon, but the problem is that there is not much time until the spring camp starts on February 1.

Lee Dae-ho suffered a measles problem at the end of last year due to the issue of Pangong expenses for the president of the athletes’ association. Since then, bad news has continued, such as being accused by a civic group on charges of neglect for work. The human pain that Lee Dae-ho would have felt due to unexpected events in the face of his final free agency in his career is difficult to estimate. Hear Lee Dae-ho’s story of having a time of reflection and enlightenment.

―It’s been a long time since you are interviewing. How have you been?

“Last year, with bad things happening, I have a lot of thoughts, reflecting on myself, making plans, and spending with my family. When I was alone, I tried to remember the times I had been climbing every day. I’ve been playing baseball until now, but I’ve only been looking ahead and running. There were things that made me feel sore, but I thought I had to change with these events. (Citizen’s group complaint related) If I do something wrong, I should be punished. However, nothing has been decided yet. I have a lot to say about FA, but I’m holding on to it now. If it’s a personal wish, I want to close the FA contract as soon as possible and focus on training, but I am very sorry to the fans for not doing that.”

―It may be difficult, but I cannot help but ask about the story of the athletes’ association. How did you accept the situation when there was a problem related to the Fan Gong Cost?

“Honestly, it was something I never thought of. I wasn’t sure why this happened when I was in my first year as the president of the athletes’ association without any problems, and then resigned after the second year. The increase was decided after discussions with the players at the board of directors, but I did not raise the board myself. As it is known, everyone has a burden to assume the position of chairman, so I asked to alleviate the burden by raising the cost of the board, but I think that I was misunderstood when I took the position.”

―The 10th president of the Athletes Association was vacant for nearly two years. In the absence of candidates, three top annual salaries for each club were nominated, and out of the 30 nominations, Lee Dae-ho became the most voted vote, and became the chairman of the new team. Did you ever expect to be the chairman of the athletes’ association at the time?

“I expected that one day I would become the chairman of the athletes’ association. However, since there are seniors in front, I thought that the next opportunity would come to me after they took over. The 10th president of the athletes’ association thought he would go back to another senior. But I accepted that I was elected with the most votes in the general vote. I didn’t know that the articles of incorporation clearly stated that the chairman shall be paid free, and that there was no provision for public service fees. It’s my fault, it’s my shortcomings. The part that accepted the previous practice as it is is greatly reflected. However, it is really wrong to say that I have embezzled or not embezzled the money that my juniors paid for dues. It hurt me a lot.”

―The sports civic group’People and Athletics’ accused Lee Dae-ho to the prosecution based on the contents of the Athletes’ Association. I am curious about how this accusation is going on now.

“I don’t know in detail what’s going on. I’ve been assigned to my attorney and haven’t received a call to come for investigation. As I repeat, if I did something wrong, I would have to be punished. However, it hasn’t been investigated yet, and the results haven’t been released. If any results come out, I will tell you with my mouth first, so I hope you wait.”

Lee Dae-ho knew well what his fans regretted about him. He says that he looked back on his life, his baseball life, and realized what kind of problems he had.

“If I had collected the boarding expenses from the athletes’ association to help or donate to those in need, the fans would have understood my position more, but I know that I was very disappointed that I could not do that. I also know the reason why a player who plays baseball for a lot of money accused him of being greedy for such money. This was short of my thoughts. I have volunteered every year, and I am always trying to do a good job, whether by collecting sales expenses or personal money, and I thought it would have been nice if I had spoken before this happened. Even though I was 16 years old in Lotte alone, I was a player who was not enough to fans, to players, and to the club front. I had a very hard time, I was having it, but I also learned a good lesson. I’m really doing my life study hard.”

―I have many questions about FA as well. How are you currently negotiating with the club?

“We met once in the new year. We talked to each other to proceed as quickly as possible, and we received positive responses. I am in a waiting position, so I hope that the contract is concluded as soon as possible. There is not much time left until the camp on February 1st.”

―Did negotiations with other teams be included in the plan while applying for the FA?

“No way. FA is a player’s right, so I applied for it. If the club had offered to renew the contract before I applied for free agency, I would not have applied for free agency. I applied for free agency because the club didn’t say anything. I just hope there will be good results as soon as possible.”

―Which is more important, contract term or contract size?

“I don’t care about the length or size of the contract. I am very curious what the club thinks of me. I want to know how Lotte is evaluating Lee Dae-ho. If I feel that sincerity, I don’t think I care much about anything else. But if I can’t feel that feeling, it will hurt a lot.”

―In the end, isn’t the contract period and annual salary that the club evaluates players?

“It must be. But do you know that’uh’ is different and’ah’ is different, right? I want to see it. Everyone sees Lee Dae-ho as’Lotte Man’. The later the contract is, the more urgent the team and me are. That’s why I want to sign a contract quickly.

―What kind of story came and went during your first meeting with the club?

“Lotte also said that I needed me, and I think I should also play at Lotte. Do you know what my dream is? Lotte is the winner. To achieve that, you have to run as a Lotte player. I think I’m very tired these days. I have a heavy heart. I’ve been playing professional baseball for over 20 years, and I think there’s been a tough time like these days. It is difficult to build a body. When I feel comfortable, I can exercise well, but I can’t concentrate.”

―That won’t happen, but what if the contract with Lotte does not go smoothly?

“I also have that in mind. If you don’t sign a contract, you can’t continue your career as a player. Sometimes, I think I should continue playing baseball while doing this. I have been doing my best in the pros, and in the national team, I have endured the pain and tried to fulfill my role. But I felt like I was losing everything for one mistake. It’s still not easy to meet people even now. Sometimes, when the fans I encountered while riding the mountain said to me, “Lee Dae-ho, do your best,” tears fell. Just because you get a lot of money and play baseball doesn’t mean you have no feelings.”

Lee Dae-ho says that his goal when he started professional was ‘30%, 30 homers and 100 RBIs’. That goal continues to this day and will continue until the end of his career. His record and achievements during his long career are hard to list. Even though he is a legend of Lotte, he will be remembered as a legend of the KBO League, so what he is going through now is a pity. I hope that sooner or later, the news that the FA contract with Lotte has ended well.

Lee Young-mi, sports reporter [email protected]

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