The San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres are in the market for a new center fielder in MLB free agency and both teams are looking at two of the same players.
Harrison Bader and Korean phenom Jung-Hoo Lee are on their radar. Via Jon Morosi:
“The Giants and Padres are active on center fielders, including free agent Harrison Bader. Jung-Hoo Lee is of interest to both clubs.”
Bader played for the New York Yankees and Cincinnati Reds last season. Although he's struggled to find his previous offensive brilliance from his days with the St. Louis Cardinals, the speedster is one of the best defensive outfielders in the game. The Padres just included Trent Grisham in the Juan Soto blockbuster trade with the Bronx Bombers, therefore a new starting CF is needed for 2024. Perhaps Bader could be the answer. He's a career .243 hitter.
As for the Giants, they're also keen on Bader and could be looking for a new man in center field because rookie Luis Matos had a pedestrian year, slashing just .250. Bader would have a lot of ground to cover in the alleys at Oracle Park but with his quickness, he'd likely thrive.
When it comes to Hoo-Lee, he was just posted on Monday. He's played the last five seasons in the KBO with the Kiwoom Heroes, smashing a career-high 23 home runs in 2022 while slashing .349.
In fact, he's batted over .300 in every single season in the KBO. That doesn't necesarilly mean it'll translate against big-league pitching, but it's certainly possible. A lot of teams are interested in the Japanese-born Hoo-Lee other than the Padres and Giants. The New York Mets are also linked to him. Hoo-Lee is represented by super agent Scott Boras.
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