'Repeating Last Year's Nightmare' Lee Jung-hoo Goes Hitless in 5 At-Bats, OPS Plummets to 0.736; Team Secures 5-4 Victory After 10-Inning Thriller [SF Review]

*This content was translated by AI.

Lee Jung-hoo (28, San Francisco Giants) is enduring an extended silence. He has struggled to time even fastballs head-on, reliving last year's nightmare.

On the 3rd (Korea time), Lee Jung-hoo started at fifth in the batting order and right fielder against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, recording five at-bats with no hits and two strikeouts in the regular season Major League Baseball (MLB) game.

Lee Jung-hoo's season batting average has dropped from 0.285 to 0.282 after failing to record a hit in three consecutive games. His on-base percentage stands at 0.326 and slugging percentage at 0.410, bringing his OPS (on-base plus slugging) down to 0.736 — now nearly matching last year's OPS of 0.734.

His first at-bat was already disappointing. As the leadoff batter in the bottom of the second inning, Lee Jung-hoo faced right-handed pitcher Bubba Chandler. After watching a curveball and four-seam fastball, he took a look at a 97.6 mph (approximately 157.1 km/h) four-seam fastball inside the zone and was called out looking. He immediately challenged the call using the Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) system, but the original ruling stood. In the bottom of the fourth inning, he struck out looking again against Chandler, marking two consecutive strikeouts.

Even when San Francisco mounted an offensive surge in the bottom of the fifth, Lee Jung-hoo could not sustain momentum. With two outs and runners on first and third, he hit a 98.2 mph (approximately 158 km/h) four-seam fastball right down the middle but mistimed it, resulting in a fly out to left field.

In the bottom of the eighth, he faced right-handed pitcher Carmen Mlodzinski. While he successfully avoided an outside pitch, he fouled off a low 93.1 mph (approximately 149.8 km/h) cutter and was retired with a fly out to right field.

He failed to capitalize on his final opportunity as well. In the top of the tenth inning, with two outs and a runner on third base while San Francisco led 4-3, Lee Jung-hoo faced former teammate Camilo Doval. He bunted a high slider but hit it directly into right fielder's glove. Despite having runners in scoring position, he failed to deliver a follow-up hit, repeatedly breaking the team's momentum.

Separate from Lee Jung-hoo's silence, San Francisco ultimately prevailed in extra innings. They took an early lead in the bottom of the first inning with Rafael Devers' 32nd solo home run of the season. The score tied at 1-1 in the fifth inning before Bryce Eldridge's sacrifice fly and Turner Hill's RBI single extended their lead to 3-1. However, Pittsburgh scored one run each in the seventh and eighth innings to tie the game at 3-3, sending the contest into extra innings.

In the top of the tenth with no outs and a runner on second base, Eldridge hit an RBI double down the left-field line off Doval to score the go-ahead run. Hill then added an RBI sacrifice fly to right field with one out and runners on second and third, pushing the lead to 5-3. Although San Francisco surrendered one run in the bottom of the tenth, they held off any further scoring to secure a 5-4 victory. Jason Pollard pitched a scoreless inning for his second win (1 loss) of the season, while Dylan Smith recorded his fourth save of the year. Doval took the loss, improving his record to 2 losses (3 wins).

After suffering a 12-13 walk-off defeat against Pittsburgh the previous day, San Francisco avenged the loss in just one day, improving their record to 58 wins and 82 losses. They currently sit fourth in the National League West Division. The three-game winning streak concluded for Pittsburgh, who now hold a 68-72 record and remain fourth in the National League Central Division.

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*This content was translated by AI.