Lee Jung-hoo to wear San Francisco uniform

Lee Jung-hoo, nicknamed 'Grandson of the Wind,’ will join Major League Baseball (MLB) as the highest-paid free agent in the posting (undisclosed competitive bid) of Asian fielders in the history of the game. The San Francisco Giants, the eight-time World Series champions of the National League (NL) West, will be Lee’s new team.

"The Giants and South Korean outfielder Jung Hoo Lee have reportedly agreed to a six-year contract worth $113 million.," MLB.com and U.S. outlets, including The Athletic, reported on Wednesday, noting that Lee will receive a total of 113 million dollars guaranteed, with option to opt-out after four years. If a player exercises his opt-out, he can immediately become a free agent and command a higher price. Neither the Giants nor Lee have made an official announcement as the deal is finalized, including medical tests.

The deal exceeds expectations in terms of both total value and average annual value (18.83 million dollars). Initially, the consensus was for a four- to six-year deal totaling 60 million to 90 million dollars. However, as it turned out, the 25-year-old instantly became a 100 million dollar-plus ‘jackpot’ player. Previously, only Choo Shin-soo (currently with SSG Randers of the KBO league) had earned a 100 million dollar-plus contract in MLB. Choo signed a seven-year, 130 million-dollar free agent contract with the Texas Rangers in 2013.

Lee Jung-hoo, the 2022 regular season Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the Korean professional baseball league, caught the attention of MLB teams early on with his precise hitting skills. After joining the Kiwoom Heroes in 2017, Lee compiled a career batting average of .340 in his seven seasons through this year with the organization to rank No. 1 all time. He also has more career walks (383) than strikeouts (304). His young age and ability to play quality center-field defense were also cited as strengths, which pushed his price tag up with competition from the New York Yankees and the San Diego Padres

Lee will also play a ‘mini Japan-Korea game’ against Shohei Ohtani, who recently joined the Los Angeles Dodgers for 10 years and 700 million dollars. The Dodgers, also of the National League West, will face San Francisco 13 times a season.


Heon-Jae Lee uni@donga.com