'Why now?' Kim Ha-seong made the stop! Lee Jung-hoo goes 0-for-4, batting average drops from .332 to .327... 8 points behind first place... Giants lose 1-3 [SF-ATL Review]

*This content was translated by AI.

Lee Jung-hoo (28, San Francisco Giants) went 0-for-4, putting his batting title race in jeopardy. Coincidentally, Kim Ha-seong (31, Atlanta Braves) leaped to block a spectacular hit.

On the 27th (Korea time), Lee Jung-hoo started at the cleanup spot and center field in the home game against Atlanta at Oracle Park in San Francisco, California, U.S., during the 2026 Major League Baseball (MLB) regular season, but went 0-for-4 in silence.

As a result, Lee Jung-hoo's batting average plummeted from .332 to .327. Lee Jung-hoo, who has been competing for the MLB batting title with fiery hitting form in May and June, maintained third place in the league batting average.

Fortunately, his rival and the MLB batting leader, Otto Lopez (Miami Marlins), also went 0-for-4 in a road game against the St. Louis Cardinals on the same day, posting a .335 average. Still, with an 8-point gap, his future performance has become crucial.

The most regrettable at-bat of the day came in the first inning. Facing Atlanta right-hander Reynaldo Lopez, Lee Jung-hoo stepped up to the plate with two outs and a runner on third base in the bottom of the first. Lee Jung-hoo picked off Lopez's fastball, changeup, and slider in succession, then connected powerfully with the fifth pitch, a low fastball. The 93.5 mph ball, with spin, shot straight toward the second-base bag.

However, near second base stood utility player and Gold Glove winner Kim Ha-seong. Kim Ha-seong leaped from a somewhat distant position to turn Lee Jung-hoo's hit into a straight-line groundout.

Things did not improve afterward. Lee Jung-hoo stepped up to the plate again in the bottom of the fourth inning with San Francisco trailing 1-2. Facing left-hander Dylan Ladd, he hit the second pitch, a sinker, hard, but it was caught as a fly ball to center field.

His hit in the bottom of the sixth also failed to clear the infield. Once again, it was Kim Ha-seong. Lee Jung-hoo quickly attacked the second pitch, an outside splitter, against right-hander Huston Waldrep, but the ball went straight into shortstop Kim Ha-seong's glove for a fly out. Lee Jung-hoo failed to record a hit. He brushed the third pitch, a high inside fastball, against left-hander Dylan Lee in the bottom of the eighth, but was retired on a fly ball to right field, ending his day.

Kim Ha-seong, who displayed excellent defense, did not fare well at the plate either. Starting as the ninth hitter and shortstop, Kim Ha-seong went 0-for-4, dropping his batting average to .072.

Kim Ha-seong struck out swinging against San Francisco right-hander Trevor McDonald in the top of the second and was retired on a fly ball to left field in the top of the fourth. Against left-hander Matt Gage, who entered in relief in the top of the sixth, he struck out swinging. In the top of the ninth, against right-hander Adrian Howser, he was retired on a straight-line groundout to shortstop. Notably, in the top of the ninth at-bat, he endured a long at-bat with persistent foul balls from a 0-ball, 2-strike count. He hit the seventh pitch, a fastball in the middle of the plate, but San Francisco shortstop Willie Adames made a jumping catch, denying him a hit.

The first run belonged to the home team, San Francisco. In the bottom of the first, Luis Araez reached base with a double to right field. However, shortstop Kim Ha-seong fielded Bryce Eldridge's ground ball and threw to third base to retire Araez, leaving one out with a runner on first. Casey Schmidt also failed to advance the runner, but Rafah Devers hit a sacrifice double to right field, driving in one run to make it 1-0.

Atlanta quickly turned the game around. In the top of the second with one out, Austin Riley hit a single to left field, and a balk by McDonald put a runner on second with one out. Dominic Smith hit a sacrifice single to center field, tying the game 1-1. In the top of the third with two outs and a runner on third, Ozzie Albies hit a sacrifice single to center field, taking a 2-1 lead.

Despite San Francisco's strong defense in the top of the fifth, Atlanta extended its lead with consecutive hits. Michael Harris III's hit was caught by right fielder Victor Bericoto with a diving catch. However, Mauricio Dubon recorded an infield hit, Matt Olson hit a double to center field to load the bases, and Albies drove in a run with a sacrifice fly to center field.

San Francisco could not recover that run. Starting pitcher McDonald, who pitched 5 1/3 innings, allowed 7 hits, walked 1, struck out 3, and gave up 3 earned runs, suffered his sixth loss of the season (2 wins). Derek Lee, who came in as Atlanta's fourth pitcher, pitched 1 2/3 innings, allowed 1 hit, and was scoreless, earning his fourth win of the season.

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*This content was translated by AI.