San Francisco Giants X-Factor Building Much-Needed Positive Momentum in Spring

A key player in the San Francisco Giants lineup has been playing at a high level in spring training.

Mar 1, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; San Francisco Giants outfielder Jung Hoo Lee (51) leads off first as Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Griffin Lockwood-Powell (72) covers the bag during the third inning at Camelback Ranch-Glendale. / Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

The San Francisco Giants know if they want to get back into the playoff picture in the National League, they need to start producing runs at a more consistent clip.

That is part of the reason they so aggressively pursued Willy Adames in free agency.

The former Milwaukee Brewers star shortstop agreed to a seven-year, $182 million deal with the Giants this past winter. It is the largest contract in franchise history and he will be under some pressure to perform.

He is one of two established impact performers in the team’s lineup along with third baseman Matt Chapman.

There are other players the team hopes can take things to another level, such as catcher Patrick Bailey, second baseman Tyler Fitzgerald and outfielder Heliot Ramos.

They know what they will get from veterans such as LaMonte Wade Jr. and Wilmer Flores when they are healthy as well.

An x-factor for the team in 2025 that will determine just how high their ceiling goes is center fielder Jung Hoo Lee.

San Francisco made a huge splash last offseason when they signed the former KBO MVP to a six-year, $113 million deal.

His first season stateside was a disaster as he played in only 37 games before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury.

While his .641 OPS was certainly not great, there were some signs that Lee was beginning to figure things out before getting injured.

As Grant Brisbee of The Athletic (subscription required) pointed out, he had cut down on his strikeout rate considerably. After going down on strikes 10 times in his first 80 at-bats, it happened only five times over the next 80.

He was starting to make life tougher for opposing pitchers, which is exactly what a team wants to see from their leadoff hitter.

When he made contact, he was hitting the ball hard with an above-average 89.1 mph exit velocity and 42.1% hard-hit rate. That is in line with two of the best bat-to-ball performers in baseball, Luis Arraez of the San Diego Padres and Steven Kwan of the Cleveland Guardians.

Where Lee separates himself from those two contact hitters is that he has a higher fast-swing rate.

Eventually, that hard contact and fast-swing rate should turn into more production at the plate.

It is starting to come to fruition in spring training, as Lee has been hitting well during Cactus League play.

Through 20 plate appearances, he has recorded a .412/.500/.647 slash line with one home run and one double.

Hitting at that clip consistently is an unrealistic expectation, but it shows the potential he possesses when healthy. 

The skills are obviously there, and if the Giants are going to exceed expectations, Lee is going to be in the middle of it as the team’s biggest x-factor.

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