Giants’ Jung Hoo Lee prioritizing team amid move to right field for 2026 season

SCOTTSDALE — Tony Vitello has never managed a game at Oracle Park. But when it comes to figuring out the Giants outfield, he’s very familiar with what the dimensions can do to the men chasing down fly balls through the marine layer. “At Oracle,” Vitello said this week, “You have to have a center fielder in right field.”The Giants are moving their center fielder to right, although not because of the dimensions. The addition of Harrison Bader, a former Gold Glove Award winner, bumped Jung Hoo Lee to the corner after a disappointing defensive season. On Friday, speaking to reporters after a workout at Scottsdale Stadium, Lee said he fully understands.“I played that position back in the KBO,” he said through interpreter Justin Han. “Going back to the past season, if I played better in center field, the organization would have kept me in center field. But, whatever it takes to make the team better. I’ve always been for the team.”Lee initially came over from South Korea to be a center fielder and leadoff hitter, and there surely is some disappointment about where he stands after his first full season. There’s a chance that the other offseason addition, Luis Arraez, vaults to the top of the pecking order when it comes to the “bat control expert tasked with hitting atop the order” power rankings. Bader already has taken the spot in center field.Lee has a lot to prove, and that’s exactly how Vitello wants many of his players to feel this spring. It’s particularly important in the outfield, where Heliot Ramos faces similar questions on the other side. Ramos and Lee were unexpectedly shaky last year, and as a result, the Giants tied for last in the big leagues in Outs Above Average on the grass. Defensive Runs Saved wasn’t much kinder; they came in at 28th. Bader alone won’t fix the problem, but the staff doesn’t expect that anyway.Ramos has drawn rave reviews for his winter work — “Ramos has worked his butt off all offseason,” ace Logan Webb said Friday — and Lee certainly has the physical tools to be a plus right fielder. He ranked in the 91st percentile in arm strength last season while playing center.Vitello traveled to South Korea last month to spend some time with Lee, but he got his first in-person, on-field look this week. He said he thinks Lee’s arm could “be a weapon out in right field.”“He doesn’t even have to really let it go full steam,” Vitello said. “He’s quick with his release, accurate with his throws. And you know, we all know he can swing the bat, but I think it could be a fun deal out there and in right field for him. I know the fans will take to him in that corner, and they’ll be a little closer to him.”The Giants had an eye on Bader for a while, but the move still caught parts of the front office by surprise. The marketing department is scrambling to figure out what to do with the Jung Hoo Crew section in the bleachers, and Lee smiled Friday and indicated he was curious, too.Vitello suggested utilizing the cove, although he might reconsider when he finally does get to Oracle for a chilly night game. Whatever the Giants decide, the seating alignment could end up being the most dramatic part of the position change. By all accounts, Lee handled it well. “He almost tried to make it easier on me,” said general manager Zack Minasian, who called Lee when the Bader deal was being finalized. “Basically the message to me was — short and sweet — it was, ‘Whatever I can do to help us win.’ He was great.”The Giants are confident it will be the right fit for Lee as he enters his third big league season, and Lee said he’ll call former teammate and good friend Mike Yastrzemski later this spring to get some pointers on the dimensions. The defensive side isn’t the only place where Lee has something to prove, though. He had a wRC+ of 107 last year, with eight homers, 12 triples and 10 stolen bases. The overall numbers were fine, but there were some deep slumps filled with grounders to second base, and he has yet to fully unleash the all-around game that led the Giants to give him a &dollar;113 million deal. Their hope is that there’s more power in the tank; he could certainly run more under Vitello, too.Vitello said new hitting coach Hunter Mense already has had conversations with Lee about what he saw in the analytics. But some of this might just be about the new staff finding a way to bring out a bit more confidence.“For me, he looked unsure,” Vitello said. “I know that there’s mechanics to it and what pitch it was and depending on what guy he’s facing — there are crazy arms in the league — but there were moments where he looked unsure. I’m kind of stealing his answer, because we’ve had some good conversations, and he’s looking to eliminate that.” Lee said he’s hopeful that he’ll benefit from having a full year of facing big league pitching under his belt, but some of his 2026 success at the plate also may be up to his new manager. Last year’s staff pushed Lee hard early in the season and then started mixing in more off days to keep him fresh, and Lee admitted in September that he lost about 12 pounds over the course of the season. The increase in depth on the position player side should make it a bit easier for Vitello to keep Lee fresh, and the outfielder said learning the intricacies of right field might not be the only thing he’s focused on when the Giants return home. “First of all, I have to eat a lot,” Lee said. “I like to sleep in a lot before a night game, but maybe I should wake up a little bit early, grab breakfast, then go back to sleep.”Download and follow the Giants Talk Podcast

Giants’ Jung Hoo Lee prioritizing team amid move to right field for 2026 season

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