SF Lee Jung-hoo-LAD Kim Hye-sung hit side by side in MLB exhibition games

*This content was translated by AI.

Lee Jung-hoo (28, San Francisco Giants) and Kim Hye-sung (27, LA Dodgers), who will be in charge of the center line of the national team at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), reported hits in Major League Baseball (MLB) exhibition games.

Lee Jung-hoo started as the fourth batter and right fielder in the 2026 MLB exhibition game against the Athletics at Scottsdale Stadium in Arizona on the 24th (Korea time) and scored one hit and one point in three at-bats.

Lee Jung-hoo, who hit and scored as the sixth batter in the previous game, raised expectations ahead of the WBC with hits in two consecutive games.

Lee Jung-hoo took the batter's box for the first time in the bottom of the second inning and hit a 97.5 mph cutter on the fourth pitch against J.T. Gin, but the ball was blocked by first baseman Brett Harris.

In the fourth inning, he met the changed pitcher Tyler Ferguson and watched a fastball outside the first pitch, and hit a four-seam fastball of 94.6 miles (152.2 kilometers) per hour on three pitches following a two-pitch ball, but it was a foul. At the ball count 1-2, he pushed 89.3 miles (143.7km) heading to the same course with four pitches and connected with a left-handed hit.

Later, Lee Jung-hoo, who headed to second base when Elliott Ramos hit the body, stepped on third base during Matt Chapman's double play and homered with Drew Gilbert's hit.

In the sixth inning, he hit a 96.8 mph (155.8 km) fast ball that penetrated into the top of the zone in a 3-0 advantageous ball count, but he swallowed the disappointment as he was caught by the center fielder. Later, he was replaced by Luis Matos ahead of the top of the seventh inning and finished the game.

He also showed impressive performance in defense. Lee Jung-hoo, who played only center field until last year, transformed into a right fielder ahead of the season, and showed off his strong shoulders to prevent scoring by catching Darrell Hernandez's hit with one out and runners on first and second in defense in the top of the third inning.

San Francisco won the Athletics 6-2 thanks to Lee Jung-hoo's score.

Kim Hye-sung also started as the first batter and second baseman in an exhibition game against the Seattle Mariners and recorded one hit and two strikeouts in four at-bats.

Kim Hye-sung, who struck out swinging by a falling ball in his first at-bat in the first inning, hit a strong hit toward first base against changed pitcher Carlos Vargas in the second inning with one out and no runner in the third inning, and Patrick Wisdom failed to catch it and got on base with an infield hit. It was a pity that the follow-up hitter Teoscar Hernandez's double play failed to advance further.

Kim Hye-sung, who was the first batter in the fifth inning, grounded out to first base. In the sixth inning, he took the batter's box with two outs and runners on the second and third bases, but struck out swinging. He was replaced by Elijah Heinlein ahead of the defense in the top of the seventh inning.

In the top of the seventh inning, Cole Irvin, who played for the Doosan Bears last year, took the mound as a pitcher for the Dodgers. With three outs, he neatly saved the inning. The Dodgers beat Seattle 3-0.

Lee Jung-hoo and Kim Hye-sung are on the shortlist of 2026 WBC to be held early next month. With a large hole in the mound, the shoulders of the two big leaguers are heavy. In order to maximize attack power in the national team, it is highly likely that Jermai Jones and Koo Ja-wook (Samsung) will also have Ahn Hyun-min (KT) fall into the corner and Lee Jung-hoo will play center field to build a center line with Kim Hye-sung.

In the batting lineup, two players with a lot of experience in big league pitchers will participate in the tournament with a great sense of responsibility to lead young players.

The national team, which is currently coordinating its practical sense through practice games with domestic teams in Okinawa, Japan, will move to Osaka to train ahead of the tournament and play practice games with the Hanshin Tigers on the 2nd and the Orix Buffaloes on the 3rd. Big leaguers, including Lee Jung-hoo and Kim Hye-sung, are expected to join the national team at that time and work together for a short time.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.