It’s an overcast mid-April afternoon at Yankee Stadium and Giants outfielder Jung Hoo Lee digs in at the plate. Lee stares down the sneering, steaming bull of a man that is Carlos Rodón, now a Yankee pitcher but once a former Giant (who didn’t exactly endear himself to the San Francisco faithful). It would feel pretty sweet for the Giants to get one over their former ally, now their pinstriped enemy.
It’s the fourth inning and the Giants have fallen behind New York 3-0. San Francisco needs a spark and Lee is ready to light the fuse.
He watches Rodón set, wind, and hurl an 85 mph slider, low in the zone. Rodón is fishing for a punchout, a swing-and-a-miss from our Korean hero, to send him back to the dugout in despair.
But Rodón doesn’t hit his spot – he hangs his pitch exactly where Lee likes it. And Lee, who possesses an otherworldly ability to put the bat on the ball, punishes Rodón for his mistake.
*CRACK*
The ball is now sailing up, up into the right field air of the Bronx skyline. This is no short porch cheapy in The House That Ruth Built, this one is a no-doubter, 406 feet into the second row of the bleachers, 103 mph off the bat.
Lee rounds the bases like he’s done this a thousand times before. Despite never being considered a prodigious power hitter, even when he was collecting MVP awards in Korea, Lee’s effortless swing shows there’s some serious power in his locker.
Fast forward to the sixth inning, Rodón still on the mound, the Yankees still ahead by a 3-1 scoreline. Lee’s solo homer from the fourth has been the Giants only run of the day but he’s back in the box again now, with runners at first and second.
Once again Rodón has two strikes on Lee. He is desperate to strike him out, to put away the pesky Giant.
*CRACK*
Lee doesn’t care for that. He waits on Rodón’s belt-high curveball, which doesn’t curve all that much, and unleashes an almighty swing, sending the ball over the wall for his second home run of the day.
Rodón spins on the mound to see where the ball lands, a grimace etched on his face, defeat already spreading through his slumped shoulders. Lee’s 3-run shot gives the Giants a 4-3 lead they would not relinquish, helping San Francisco secure their first series victory at Yankee Stadium since Interleague play began in 2002.
The Korean’s first multi-homer game of his MLB career, against the Evil Empire no less, has been one of many bright moments thus far in this fledgling 2025 season. The Giants have surprised everybody with their 24-14 record (at the time of writing) and Lee has been one of the major reasons behind that success.
His 2024 rookie campaign was cruelly cut short after just 37 games by season-ending shoulder surgery, and Giants fans weren’t sure what to expect from Lee this year. To say he’s been a pleasant surprise would be a massive understatement.
As we enter mid-May, Lee’s name can be found on multiple offensive leaderboards: he’s 10th in the majors for hits (43), 7th for doubles (11), 7th for triples (2), 19th for batting average (.301), and 15th in fWAR (1.5). Lee is off to such a blistering start, you’d be forgiven if you wanted to provisionally pencil him in as the Giants’ representative for July’s All-Star game; many pundits and fans are already doing so.
Fans in particular are utterly smitten with Lee. The “Grandson of the Wind” (one of the best baseball nicknames of all time) is a ballpark sensation, garnering love and admiration from everyone in the stands. Lee has already inspired two different fan groups at Oracle Park – the Hoo Lee Gans (51 members wearing wigs of fire, in honour of his jersey number) and the Jung Hoo Crew (complete with officially branded t-shirts).
After years of missing out on the Bryce Harper‘s, the Aaron Judge‘s, and the Shohei Ohtani‘s, perhaps the Giants have finally found their superstar in Lee? It definitely feels that way right now. All of a sudden, the six-year, $113 million contract Lee signed in late 2023 is beginning to look like a giant bargain (pardon the pun).
Obviously there’s a lot of baseball left to play this year but there can be no doubt that Lee’s influence on the Giants has been immense. His compatibility with Willy Adames, Matt Chapman, Logan Webb and the rest of the roster has helped create one of the more exciting Giants squads in recent years.
With Lee leading the charge, the Giants are stepping confidently towards a brighter future, and thriving in the present. It should make for an exciting summer.
Ash Day is the San Francisco Giants writer for Bat Flips and Nerds. Read more from him here and follow him on Instagram at @SayHey_UK
Photo credit for featured image by Suzanna Mitchell/San Francisco Giants/Getty Images.
