Lee Jung-hoo of the San Francisco Giants has a batting average of .300 at risk. More regrettably, he hasn't hit a long ball in the last 10 games. He has dropped from 1st in the institutional sector for doubles to 4th in the league.
On the 6th (Korea time), Lee Jung-hoo started as the No. 3 center fielder in a game against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field in Chicago, USA.
Lee Jung-hoo faced off against Cubs left-handed starter Matthew Boyd and was out in the first inning on a ground ball to shortstop. He hit a fastball clocked at 93.7 mph (150.8 km/h), but the shortstop, who was positioned at second base, moved to the second baseman's side to make the play as the ball was hit.
Trailing 0-2, Lee Jung-hoo came up to bat as the lead-off hitter in the 4th inning and hit a single to left field against Boyd on a count of 1 ball and 2 strikes. He was forced out at second base during Matt Chapman’s ground ball to third base. Later, it tied the game at 2-2 with Luis Matos’s two-run home run.
Lee Jung-hoo came to bat as the lead-off hitter in the 6th inning, trailing 2-4, and hit a changeup against Boyd on a full count but was out on a ground ball to first base. In the 8th inning, trailing 2-9, he hit a ball that looked like a hit to left-center field against right-handed pitcher Gavin Hollowell, but it was caught by the left fielder.
San Francisco lost the game 2-9 as third baseman Chapman and shortstop Willy Adames each made two critical errors.
Lee Jung-hoo went 1 for 4, bringing his season batting average to .333 (40 hits in 132 at-bats) and an OPS of .844. His batting pace has been consistently declining. In the last 10 games, he has had 36 at-bats with 8 hits, resulting in a batting average of .222. In May, he has had 16 at-bats with 3 hits in 5 games, resulting in a batting average of .188. At this rate, his season batting average of .300 is at risk.
Most notably, there have been no extra-base hits in the last 10 games. Lee Jung-hoo, once a doubles machine, has not hit a double since his 11th on April 25 against Milwaukee, and he has dropped to 4th in the institutional sector for doubles in the National League.
Pete Alonso of the New York Mets leads with 13 doubles, followed by Jackson Churio of Milwaukee and Manny Machado of San Diego, each with 12, while Lee Jung-hoo ranks 4th.
The lack of doubles indicates that well-hit balls are being caught by defenders; it also suggests that he has not been able to hit hard-hit balls with high exit velocities to left-center or right-center. Analysis and scrutiny are increasing regarding Lee Jung-hoo, who showcased explosive hitting until mid-April.
Meanwhile, Major League Baseball's official website MLB.com revealed the results of the MVP mock voting on the 6th. In the MVP mock voting with participation from a panel of 46 experts, Lee Jung-hoo did not make it into the National League 'Top 5,' but he was mentioned as the 5th name among players who received at least one vote in positions 1-5.
In the National League, Fernando Tatis Jr. of San Diego ranked first (with 16 first-place votes), Pete Alonso of the New York Mets ranked second (with 17 first-place votes), Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers ranked third (with 8 first-place votes), Kyle Tucker of the Chicago Cubs ranked fourth (with 4 first-place votes), and Corbin Carroll of Arizona ranked fifth (with zero first-place votes).
Other vote-getters included Francisco Lindor of the New York Mets, Pete Crow-Armstrong of the Chicago Cubs, Juan Soto of the New York Mets, and Teoscar Hernández of the Los Angeles Dodgers, followed by Lee Jung-hoo.
In the American League, Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees received all 46 first-place votes, unanimously ranking first.
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