Giants' Lee Jung-hoo pushes hitting streak to career-best 12 games

Lee Jung-hoo Sets Record for Longest Hitting Streak by Korean Batter in MLB History

San Francisco Giants outfielder Lee Jung-hoo has set a new record for the longest hitting streak by a South Korean player in Major League Baseball (MLB) history, according to Yonhap News Agency.

Lee reached the milestone on June 9, when he went 2-for-5 with two RBIs in the Giants' 6-3 loss to the Washington Nationals at Oracle Park. That extended his hitting streak to 17 games, breaking the previous mark of 16 games shared by Choo Shin-soo (with the Cincinnati Reds in 2013) and Kim Ha-seong (with the San Diego Padres in 2023).

During the streak, Lee was one of the hottest hitters in baseball. Through the first 17 games, he batted .500 (36-for-72) and raised his season average from .265 to .338, according to Yonhap.

The streak came to an end on June 12, when Lee went 0-for-3 in the Giants' 5-1 loss to the Chicago Cubs at Oracle Park. That ended the run at 18 games, during which Lee batted .500 (36-for-72) and struck out only three times, per Yonhap. After the hitless game, his average stood at .333, second-best in the majors.

Lee's pursuit of the record began in earnest in early June. On June 4, he equaled his career high with an 11-game hitting streak, going 2-for-4 in a 1-0 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. The next day, he set a new personal best with a 12-game streak after going 4-for-5 with an RBI and three runs scored in a 12-9 victory over the Brewers. From there, he extended the streak to 13, 14, 15, 16, and then 17 games, culminating in the record-breaking performance against the Nationals.

During the run, Lee also had his first five-hit game in the majors, going 5-for-6 with two RBIs and a run scored in a 19-6 win over the Colorado Rockies on May 31. That performance helped raise his batting average from .268 to .304, according to Yonhap.

Lee's streak was the longest active hitting streak in MLB at the time it ended, and it is now the longest ever by a South Korean player in the majors.

Lee, who won two batting titles in the Korea Baseball Organization before joining the Giants in December 2023, is in his third MLB season. He batted .262 in 37 games in his injury-plagued rookie year in 2024 and .266 in 150 games last season, according to Yonhap.