Lee Jung-hoo (San Francisco Giants) started for the second consecutive year in the Major League Baseball (MLB) opener. There was no hit, but he got on base with two walks and scored all of them, laying the groundwork for his team's come-from-behind victory.
Lee Jung-hoo started as San Francisco's third batter center fielder in a game against the Cincinnati Reds in the MLB regular league of the 2025 season at Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati, Ohio on the 28th (Korea time). Lee Jung-hoo, who started as San Francisco's No. 1 center fielder when he made his MLB debut last year, proved his worth by entering the MLB regular league opening roster for two consecutive seasons.
On this day, Lee Jung-hoo went to the batter's box four times and failed to record a hit. However, he walked twice in the fourth and ninth innings to score important runs. Lee Jung-hoo got on base with a walk with one out in the top of the fourth inning, and follow-up hitter Eliot Ramos hit a two-run home run to score San Francisco's first run this season.
Lee Jung-hoo then walked in his fourth at-bat in the top of the ninth inning with his team trailing 2-3. He drew a walk while continuing the game to eight pitches with opposing pitcher Ian Jibo. Lee Jung-hoo, who stepped to third base with Matt Chapman's hit, homered with a timely hit to the right by Patrick Bailey, the follow-up batter, to score a tie. San Francisco, which was in the mood, came from behind to win 6-4 over Cincinnati as Wilmer Flores hit a come-from-behind three-run home run with two outs and runners on the first and third bases.
Lee Jung-hoo injured his shoulder during a game against Cincinnati on May 13 last year and went to the operating table. However, he has been preparing to return to the regular season through exhibition games this year, and returned after about 10 months in an MLB regular league game to play the opening game. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh outfielder Bae Ji-hwan made the team's opening roster for the first time in two years since 2023 based on his batting average of 0.381 (16 hits in 42 at-bats) in the exhibition game. However, he failed to play in an away game against Miami on the 28th.
