The threat from the Giants to the Yankees' player acquisition

The San Francisco Giants are suddenly a contender for South Korean OF Jung Hoo-Lee, who the New York Yankees are hoping to sign this offseason.

The Giants front management will go after Hoo-Lee, according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network:

@jonmorosi says the Giants and Yankees are among teams expected to show interest in KBO star Jung-Hoo Lee pending his posting to MLB.

Hoo-Lee Brings MVP Level Play to Yankees, Giants, and Other MLB Suitors

As a representative of the Kiwoom Heroes franchise, Hoo-Lee has dominated the KBO League. He became the 2022 KBO MVP after winning the 2017 Rookie of the Year title. He has excelled both in the defense and at the plate, winning five Golden Glove awards.

Hoo-Lee is an average hitter who has a career.340 batting average during his seven professional seasons. With an average of 83 runs and more than 75 RBIs every season, he has been an incredible scorer. He has recorded at least 100 RBIs in two different seasons.

From 2017 to 2020, Hoo-Lee played equally at all three outfield positions; however, starting in 2021, he became obsessed with center field. Hoo-Lee is now boasting an impressive.995 fielding percentage and has yet to make more than three errors in a season.

Yankees Could Solve Outfield Conundrum With the Addition of Hoo-Lee

The Yankees would greatly benefit from adding Hoo-Lee as they want to improve their outfield options beside Judge. The Yankees would have greater adaptability and a better glove if they could man all three spots and deny opponents opportunities to score. He would also address their RBI problem because he has been productive all season long and established the Heroes single-season franchise mark in 2020 with 49 doubles.

However, Hoo-Lee will probably be top on the Giants’ priority list given that they finished 2023 with the third-worst collective batting average (.235) of all clubs and did not put up a good offensive display. The Giants will have to fight to obtain the Korean star if the Yankees lose out on their other outfield targets, who are San Diego Padres LF Juan Soto and Chicago Cubs OF Cody Bellinger.