Lee Jung-hoo (San Francisco Giants) started as the first batter and center fielder in the away game against the Cleveland Guardians in the US Major League Baseball (MLB) exhibition game held at Goodyear Ball Park in Arizona on the 4th (Korea time) and showed 1 hit, 1 walk, 1 RBI, 1 run, and 1 stolen base.
He played in four exhibition games and produced hits in all of them. Making his first debut in a match against the Seattle Mariners on April 28, Lee started off to a flying start with one hit and one run from three times at bat. He had two hits (one homer) from three times at bat against the Arizona Diamondbacks on April 1, and scored one RBI and one run. He displayed his first homer, first double and first multi-hit at the same time. The next day, Lee also played in a match against the Texas Rangers on April 2, and maintained his condition with one hit from three times at bat.
He had a hit in the previous game, smiling. He also had his first walk and first stolen base. His batting average at the exhibition game increased from 0.444 to 0.455 (five hits in 11 times at bat). He added one homer, two RBIs, three runs scored and one stolen base.
Lee Jung-hoo faced off as the leadoff hitter in the top of the first inning against starter Tanner Vaiby. When Vaiby’s pitches were all controlled high, he calmly looked at him and drew a straight walk. With one out, he homered on Ramonte Wade Jr.’s homer to the right-center field. With two outs and runners on the first and third bases in the top of the second inning, he aimed for the first pitch of his new pitcher, Hunter Stanley. He swallowed the disappointment by hitting a grounder to the first base.
He didn’t miss the opportunity in the top of the fourth inning. He hit the first pitch of Hunter Gaddis with two outs and runners on the first and second bases. He hit a timely RBI single to right, and presented his team with the score 3-2. He then stole second base. However, his follow-up Marco Luciano struck out swinging, failing to lead to an additional point.
Lee finished the game by replacing Tyler Fitzgerald at the plate in the top of the sixth inning. San Francisco won the game 6-5 against Cleveland thanks to Lee’s performance.
Lee Jung-hoo, who debuted as the first pick by the Nexen Heroes (now Kiwoom Heroes) in the KBO League in 2017, won the Rookie of the Year award that year. After growing every year, he won the honor of regular season MVP in 2022, winning five awards in batting categories: batting average (0.349), hits (193), RBIs (113), slugging percentage (0.575), and on-base percentage (0.421). He also won the Golden Glove in outfield for five consecutive years from 2018 to 2022.
Lee Jung-hoo, who conquered the KBO League, chose to challenge himself through the posting system (closed competitive bidding) after the end of last season. He signed a large-scale contract with San Francisco worth a total of 113 million U.S. dollars for six years. It was the highest treatment ever among Korean players who entered the big league through the posting system. He is also the highest record even if he expands his scope to become an Asian fielder. It also includes a clause that allows opt-out (the contract was canceled due to agreement between the club and the player) after the end of the 2027 season.
San Francisco Giants manager Bob Melvin picked Lee as the leadoff and starting center fielder early on. Lee is repaying trust by displaying stellar performances.
It is all thanks to the fact that they have thoroughly prepared for the offseason. “Major League pitchers speed up fast, but most are tall and have high release points,” Lee said in an interview with U.S. media after the game against Arizona on Sunday. “That’s why I can see the ball faster. Different breaking balls move differently. I trained to prepare for this throughout the winter, and I’m glad to see good results.”
According to the Mercury News, a local media outlet in San Francisco, Lee focused on batting training by adjusting the release points of his pitching machine last winter. Since joining the spring training in San Francisco early last month, he has constantly watched pitchers’ balls. He made the balls familiar to his eyes. He has succeeded in leading to the result.
MLB.COM, the official major league website, predicted the starting lineup and pitcher rotation for the opening game of 30 big league clubs on the 3rd. It predicted Lee Jung-hoo as San Francisco’s No. 1 hitter and center fielder. The media predicted, “Lee Jung-hoo will experience some growth pains in the process of transitioning from the KBO League to an MLB player, but he will be active as San Francisco’s No. 1 hitter for years to come thanks to his excellent batting skills.”
The favorable comments for Lee Jung-hoo are natural.
BY: 바카라사이트