Lee Jung-hoo (San Francisco Giants) extended his hitting streak to 18 games. A day after setting a new record for the longest hitting streak by a Korean major leaguer, he broke his own mark again.
On the 11th (Korea time), at Oracle Park in San Francisco, California, in a home game against the Washington Nationals in the 2026 Major League Baseball (MLB) season, Lee Jung-hoo started as the No. 5 hitter and right fielder and went 2-for-4 with a walk, two runs, and a stolen base.
Lee recorded a hit in his 17th consecutive game against Washington the day before, surpassing the 16-game record for the longest hitting streak by a Korean major leaguer held by Choo Shin-soo and Kim Ha-sung. He added two more hits on this day, pushing the streak to 18 games. Lee's hitting run has continued since the game against the Los Angeles (LA) Dodgers on the 15th of last month.
Lee also logged his 23rd multi-hit game of the season. A multi-hit game is when a player records two or more hits in a game. Having posted three straight multi-hit games recently, Lee's season batting average rose from .335 to .338. As of the final whistle, that ranks second in MLB overall batting average. MLB is divided into the American League and National League, and the overall batting average ranking combines players from both leagues.
Lee led off the bottom of the second for his first at-bat but went down swinging against Washington lefty starter Foster Griffin. With one out and the bases empty in the bottom of the fourth, he reached for a low outside pitch and grounded out to second.
The first hit came in the bottom of the sixth. With two outs and the bases empty and San Francisco trailing 1-6, Lee went after Griffin's first-pitch curveball and lined a single to right. Though the pitch was low and out of the strike zone, he used bat control to produce a hit and complete his 18-game streak. He advanced to second on a wild pitch but did not score as no one drove him in.
Lee also reached base in the bottom of the eighth to aid the rally. With San Francisco down 3-9, he drew a walk after a full-count battle. He then stole second and scored on Daniel Susac's RBI single.
San Francisco pulled off a dramatic walk-off comeback in the bottom of the ninth. Trailing 6-10 heading into their last at-bat, the Giants closed the gap with back-to-back doubles by Luis Arraez and Matt Chapman. A walk to Rafael Devers put runners on first and second with none out, bringing Lee back to the plate.
Washington brought in left-hander Mitchell Parker to face Lee. With the count at one ball and two strikes, Lee went with an outside fastball and shot a single to left. The hit loaded the bases with none out for San Francisco.
Then Bryce Eldridge launched a walk-off grand slam to right, and the game ended in an 11-10 win for San Francisco. Lee's ninth-inning single laid the groundwork for the massive comeback. With the win, San Francisco avoided being swept in the home three-game series against Washington. Lee will rest on the 12th and then play a home three-game series against the Chicago Cubs starting on the 13th.
Even locally, Lee's hitting form is drawing attention. NBC Sports in the United States recently rated Lee as one of the hottest hitters in the majors, and teammate Eldridge said after the previous game that Lee was along the lines of "the best hitter in the world right now."