Jung-hoo Lee Officially Joins MLB San Francisco Giants '6 Years, 146.4 Billion KRW'
Lee Jung-hoo (25) officially signed with the prestigious Major League Baseball (MLB) team San Francisco Giants for the highest posting (non-public competitive bidding) amount ever for a Korean player.
On the 15th (Korean time), the Giants officially announced Lee Jung-hoo's acquisition on the team's official social media channels (SNS). On the Giants' official Facebook account, alongside a photo of Lee Jung-hoo, it was written in both English and Korean: "Welcome to the San Francisco Giants, Jung Hoo Lee."
The Giants also disclosed the details of the contract with Lee Jung-hoo. As previously reported by MLB insiders such as John Heyman and Ken Rosenthal, the Giants and Lee Jung-hoo agreed on a 6-year contract worth $113 million (approximately 146.4 billion KRW). The Giants explained that the contract includes an opt-out clause allowing Lee Jung-hoo to terminate the contract by mutual agreement with the team after four years.
Lee Jung-hoo set the record for the highest total salary among Korean players who entered MLB through posting. The previous largest contract was Ryu Hyun-jin's 6-year, $36 million deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2013 (an average of $6 million per year). Among hitters, Kim Ha-seong held the largest contract with a 4-year, $28 million deal signed with the San Diego Padres in 2021.
According to San Francisco, Lee Jung-hoo will receive $7 million in his first year. Then, $16 million in 2025, and $22 million in both 2026 and 2027. If Lee Jung-hoo does not exercise his opt-out and continues with the Giants, he will earn $20.5 million in 2028 and 2029. A signing bonus of $5 million will be paid separately.
Lee Jung-hoo and the San Francisco team also revealed plans for charitable donations. Lee Jung-hoo will donate $60,000 to the Giants Community Fund in his first year, and $80,000 in 2025. Subsequently, he will donate $110,000 each in 2026 and 2027, and $102,500 each in 2028 and 2029.
Lee Jung-hoo is scheduled to hold a press conference at 6 a.m. on the 16th (Korean time) at his home stadium, Oracle Park.
Lee Jung-hoo debuted in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) League in 2017 and over seven seasons posted a batting average of .340, with 65 home runs, 515 RBIs, 69 stolen bases, and 581 runs scored. After establishing himself as the top hitter in the KBO League, including winning the Most Valuable Player award in 2022, he successfully entered Major League Baseball.
San Francisco is a prestigious team celebrating its 140th anniversary this year and has won the World Series 8 times. This ranks fifth in the number of championships behind the New York Yankees (27 times), St. Louis Cardinals (11 times), and both the Oakland Athletics and Boston Red Sox (9 times each). The Giants also dominated the 2010s with three championships (2010, 2012, 2014).
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With Lee Jung-hoo joining San Francisco, he will engage in a Korea-Japan baseball pride rivalry starting next year with Shohei Ohtani, who signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers on the 12th. The Dodgers and Giants are well-known rivals in the National League. Lee Jung-hoo will also compete in the same division as his close senior and former teammate Kim Ha-seong, who also played for Kiwoom.
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