What are you doing when Lee Jung-hoo hits his 10th home run! SF bows its head after a bullpen disaster in the 8th inning → LAD wins 2-8

*This content was translated by AI.

'The Grandson of the Wind' Lee Jung-hoo (28, San Francisco Giants) launched his 10th home run of the season, but it was overshadowed by the team's weak and struggling pitching staff.

On the 19th (Korean time), Lee Jung-hoo started as the fourth hitter and right fielder in an away matchup against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California, USA, recording one hit (one home run) in four at-bats with one RBI and one run scored. Lee Jung-hoo maintained a season batting average of 0.274.

Lee Jung-hoo hit a home run from his first at-bat. Leading off the bottom of the second inning with the team trailing 0-1, Lee Jung-hoo engaged in a full-count battle against Dodgers ace Tyler Glasnow. With the count at 2-2, he immediately swung at the fifth pitch—a 81.5 mph (approximately 131.2 km/h) knuckle curve that drifted to the center of the plate—and the ball sailed cleanly over the right-field fence at Dodger Stadium.

Until this game, Glasnow had been so powerful with his knuckle curve that he induced five swings and misses; Lee Jung-hoo's perfectly timed hit was the only one that connected, resulting in this tying solo home run.

With this, Lee Jung-hoo joins Choi Hee-seop (2004), Choo Shin-soo (2009), Kang Jung-ho (2015), Lee Dae-ho (2016), Park Byung-ho (2016), Choi Ji-man (2018), and Kim Ha-seong (2022) as the eighth Korean-born Major Leaguer to reach double-digit home runs in a single season.

San Francisco took the lead 2-1 with a two-out, bases-loaded single by Jonah Heim in the bottom of the third inning. Starting pitcher Cesar Valdez also held strong for 4⅔ innings allowing only two earned runs, maintaining a tight game flow.

However, the bullpen collapsed at the crucial moment. In the bottom of the sixth, Jason Pollie gave up a one-run, two-out double to Ho-su De Paula, putting San Francisco behind 2-3. Then, in the bottom of the eighth, the worst disaster in franchise history unfolded.

Relief pitcher Philip Abner allowed back-to-back home runs to Max Muncy and Kyle Tucker, then immediately surrendered another back-to-back home run to Mookie Betts and Will Smith, giving up four home runs and five earned runs in a single inning. This marked the first time since Alan Embree in 2001 that a San Francisco pitcher allowed four home runs in one game—a span of 25 years.

Blocked by the Dodgers' formidable bullpen, San Francisco ultimately lost 2-8. Carrying their ninth loss of the season (64 wins), San Francisco had to face the stark difference in team strength against the already clinched division-winning Dodgers (94 wins, 60 losses), and Lee Jung-hoo's valuable 10th home run hit away from home was overshadowed by the bullpen's self-inflicted fire.

Meanwhile, Dodgers starter Glasnow delivered a strong performance with six innings, three hits allowed (one home run), ten strikeouts, and two earned runs, securing his fifth win of the season.

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*This content was translated by AI.