The Giants signed Jung Hoo Lee this winter in hopes of stabilizing the top of their order, and so far in camp, the former Korean League has done just that.
Lee has at least one hit in all five Cactus League games he’s played in after going 1 for 2 and drawing a walk Monday in a 12-10 loss to the Colorado Rockies at Salt River Fields in Scottsdale, Arizona.
The 25-year-old center fielder has a spring slash line of .462/.533/1.302 with one homer.
It’s a small sample size, but it’s an encouraging sign for a team that used nine different leadoff hitters last season and signed Lee to a $113 million, six-year deal.
Lee was named the MVP in the KBO in 2022, and posted a .340/.407/.491 slash line during his seven seasons.
– Spencer Howard, a former Phillies top prospect making a big to break camp in the Giants rotation, made his second spring start and struck out three in two innings.
He also allowed two hits and walked two batters, but didn’t allow a run in a game that ended up a slugfest.
San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Spencer Howard throws against the Colorado Rockies during the first inning of a spring training baseball game Monday, March 4, 2024, in Scottsdale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
The teams combined for 22 runs and 27 hits. Each team had a five-run inning.
The Giants (2-6) led 7-1 going into the bottom of the fourth and were up 9-8 before the Rockies scored three times in the bottom of the seventh.
– Former Diamondbacks shortstop Nick Ahmed, who the Giants signed to a minor league free agent deal last week, had another big day at the plate. Ahmed, 33, a two-time Gold Glove winner coming off the worst offensive season of his career, went 2 for 2 and scored three runs against the Rockies.
San Francisco Giants’ Nick Ahmed, center, celebrates his run scored against the Colorado Rockies with Giants’ Tyler Fitzgerald (49) and other teammates during the fourth inning of a spring training baseball game, Monday, March 4, 2024, in Scottsdale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
Ahmed, who homered in his first two Cactus League games with the Giants, has five hits in his first eight at-bats in camp.
— Pablo Sandoval served as the Giants’ DH and remained in the game until the ninth inning, and went hitless in four at-bats with three strikeouts. Sandoval, who hasn’t played in the majors since 2021, is still looking for his first Cactus League hit — he’s 0-for-10 with seven strikeouts.
– On the day new third baseman Matt Chapman arrived at camp, J.D. Davis started at first base. Davis batted cleanup and went 2 for 3, including a two-run single in the fourth inning that gave the Giants a 6-1 lead.
– The Giants reassigned three players to minor league camp before the game: outfielder Grant McCray and catchers Adrián Sugastey and Andy Thomas.
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