With his San Francisco Giants trailing 2-0 to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the May 14 game between the two teams, San Francisco outfielder Jung Hoo Lee tied the game in the fifth inning with a two-run homer.
The home run, though, was not typical. It was an inside-the-park home run. In fact, it was an unusual — and as it turned out, historic — trip around the bases for the San Francisco right fielder.
Jung Hoo Lee’s Hit Didn’t Resemble a Home Run Swing
While inside-the-park home runs are rare to begin with, Lee’s was particularly unique.
Off the bat, it was immediately clear that Lee did not hit a conventional home run. It looked, in fact, like a single or, possibly, with his speed, a double.
The left-handed Lee flipped an 0-2 offering from Dodger pitcher Emmet Sheehan into left field for what looked like a classic “don’t hit it hard, just hit it where they ain’t” base hit. Left fielder Teoscar Hernández seemed to think that the ball would hop over the short wall down Dodger Stadium’s left field line for a ground-rule double.
But instead of hopping over the wall, the ball hit off of it. It then shot away from Hernández, allowing Eric Haase to score from first base. As it turned out, Lee wasn’t far behind.
Lee, who was running hard out of the box, was sent home by third base coach Héctor Borg. And while the Dodgers would have had a chance to throw Lee out with a well-executed relay, the throw into catcher Dalton Rushing was high.
Lee’s slide beat the tag of Rushing, who couldn’t hold onto the throw anyway.
As it turned out, Lee’s sprint around the bases was the first of its kind.
Lee’s Home Run Made San Francisco Giants History
Lee became the first Giant to hit an inside-the-park home run since the recently traded Patrick Bailey, who hit an inside-the-park walk-off home run against the Philadelphia Phillies in 2025. It was also the first of its kind by a Giant in more than 64 seasons of playing games at Chavez Ravine.
When Lee slid in safely at home, he became the first Giant to ever hit an inside-the-park home run at Dodger Stadium.
Certainly, Dodger Stadium doesn’t have the massive gaps that stadiums like San Francisco’s Oracle Park or Colorado’s Coors Field have. Its symmetrical nature also minimizes the risks of unusual kicks, like the one that led to Bailey’s aforementioned walk-off.
That said, Dodger Stadium isn’t a small ballpark by any means. We also must remember that it opened in 1962, and the Giants have played there more than any visiting team. They’ve also played a lot of games at Dodger Stadium with players who combined great speed and power (like Barry Bonds and Willie Mays) in the lineup.
Ultimately, the game didn’t end well for San Francisco. The Dodgers won 5-2, salvaging what was a disappointing series split for the Giants, who won the first two games of the four-game set. But even if the game and series didn’t end great, the Giants and their fans did get to enjoy some history.
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