"I'm hitting a 124m home run → Stop expressing 'Korea's Ichiro'." Japanese fans acknowledge this, and this is the dignity of Lee Jung-hoo, the 'long hit rate-OPS No. 2.'

"I'm hitting a 124m home run → Stop expressing 'Korea's Ichiro'." Japanese fans acknowledge this, and this is the dignity of Lee Jung-hoo, the 'long hit rate-OPS No. 2.'

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Japanese baseball fans are also excited about Lee Jung-hoo (San Francisco Giants)'s performance. Some suggested that Lee should stop using the expression "Korea's Ichiro" due to his slugging capability.

"San Francisco outfielder Lee Jung-hoo, who has been in good form since the beginning of the season, hit consecutive home runs against New York Yankees left-hander Carlos Rodon," Japanese media "Sports Hochi" reported on the 14th. "In the fourth inning, he hit a slider from the full count to make a 124m extra-large hit, and in the sixth inning, he hit a curveball to hit a three-run home run over right fielder Aaron Judge."

Lee started as the third batter and center fielder in an away game against the Yankees in the 2025 Major League regular season held at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, New York, on the 14th (Korea time), and recorded two hits in three at-bats (two homers), four RBIs, two runs and one walk. San Francisco won the game from behind by 5-4 thanks to Lee's outstanding performance.

Lee Jung-hoo, who stepped down with a fly ball to center field in his first at-bat, hit a home run in his second at-bat. Lee Jung-hoo, who appeared in the top of the fourth inning when his team was trailing 0-3, hit a slider at the sixth pitch from the full count against left-hander Carlos Rodon, and hit a solo shot over the right-center fence with a 103.2 mph (about 166.1 km) and a 406 feet (about 123.7 m).

It was a big hit that became a homerun in all of the 30 major stadiums except for San Francisco's home stadium, Oracle Park. It was his second homerun of this season.

In his next at-bat, Lee completed his first consecutive homeruns since his debut in the big league. With runners on the first and second bases with one out in the top of the sixth inning when his team was losing 1-3, Lee hit a curveball that was the highest at the 5th pitch in the 1B2S ball count against Rodon. The hit flew 363 feet (about 110.6 meters) and led to an upset three-run homer over the right-center fence. Lee was the first player in Rodon's 11-year career in the big league to allow two homeruns in a game against left-handed hitters.

After that, Lee Jung-hoo, who took one more walk, recorded a batting average of 0.352 (19 hits in 54 times at bat) with three home runs, 11 RBIs, 16 runs and three steals, and his OPS increased to 1.130. In the double category, it is still the first place in the entire major with eight, and its slugging percentage (0.704) and OPS are the only second place after Judge. 메이저사이트

"Lee Jung-hoo, nicknamed 'Korea's Ichiro,' injured his left shoulder in the first year of his big league debut and played only 37 games. However, he has maintained good batting performance and batting average of around 300 this season since he took care of his physical condition since the camp," he added.

Japanese baseball fans reacted enthusiastically in the article, saying, "He is an outstanding Korean hitter. He is becoming the core of the team," "He has always been a talented hitter, and he is the best fielder in Korea," and "It was a great performance to single-handedly lead the team to victory today."

One fan even commented, "If you hit such a home run, Ichiro is no longer Ichiro. Shouldn't we stop using the term 'Korean Ichiro' now?" Ichiro Suzuki, who was inducted into the MLB Hall of Fame in January, left a big mark, including the Rookie of the Year award in his first year in the big league, the joint MVP award, and the Golden Glove award for 10 consecutive years. However, he was far from a home run hitter, as he hit 117 home runs in 19 seasons.