San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Lee’s outfield adjustments key to defensive improvement
SAN DIEGO — Defense is a priority for the San Francisco Giants, as they’ve said numerous times last year and this.
In 2022, they had the worst defense in the majors, and much of that came in the outfield, where their defensive runs saved total was a whopping minus-44. The next-worst team was at minus-33. Last season they made a big improvement, finishing with a more respectable minus-7 in the outfield.
Then they signed a new center fielder, Jung Hoo Lee, who comes with a strong reputation at the position, allowing them to keep Mike Yastrzemski in right. Lee might not have the arm of some center fielders, but his throws during Cactus League games were accurate and his instincts good.
Lee is still learning, though. He will have to all year, playing almost entirely outside for the first time as a pro player and in stadiums he has never seen. He will have his challenges: In an exhibition Tuesday against Oakland, Lee found himself blinded by the sun, something he hadn’t dealt with. On Opening Day on Thursday, he fielded a lot of balls in the outfield before the game to get familiar with Petco Park, but when the game started there were so many more fans, the backdrop was significantly different and he had to become accustomed to that.
“When the crowd was packed in their seats, I had a different kind of view,” Lee said, with Justin Han interpreting. “I had to learn that lesson.”
Lee also is becoming acquainted with the opposing hitters and their tendencies, and even his own pitchers. He uses a chart for positioning, and it’s not translated into Korean — he speaks enough English to know the names, and sometimes he glances at the scoreboard to make sure, bench coach Ryan Christenson said.
The main thing for Christenson is that Lee has a good first step and good instincts. For Lee, the most important thing is being aware of the situation. On Thursday night, Lee opted not to dive for a flare by the Padres’ Fernando Tatis Jr. in the sixth, reasoning that the Giants held a one-run lead at the time and “if I didn’t make it, he’d be in scoring position right away.”
Logan Webb, who was on the mound at the time, was sitting next to Lee as he said this and he patted Lee with his glove and said, “Keep ’em on first! I’ll get a groundball.”
The Giants’ emphasis on defense can’t always rule the day; at times, manager Bob Melvin might opt for a surprise in order to get a platoon advantage. On Friday, that meant that LaMonte Wade Jr. was in right for the first time since playing one inning there Aug. 7; his previous work there last year came in April.
Wade is a decent outfielder, though, and he got in some work there during the spring and before Friday’s game.
“I haven’t really been out there that much the last couple of years, and when I have, it’s mostly been a late-inning switch,” Wade said. “But I know I can do it for sure.”
“I’m never concerned with infielders going to the outfield,” Christenson said. “Infielder instincts translate to the outfield beautifully. It’s just a matter of getting a couple of reps and balls off the bat, which he was doing in spring training. I have no worries about LaMonte.”
There was some surprise Friday that with Yastrzemski going on paternity leave and Luis Matos on the roster that Matos wasn’t in the lineup; he had a big spring, batting .302 with four homers and a 1.009 OPS.
He also improved defensively, which was a must: Matos looked uncertain in the outfield at times last year, finishing with minus-10 defensive runs saved.
Matos said that he has worked hard to get better in the field, especially when it comes to his first step. Christenson suggested he use a swaying motion similar to those that baserunners employ to get better jumps and prevent being flatfooted on balls, and that has helped him get under way more quickly.
“It’s when you have both feet on the ground at the point of contact, that’s when you can get stuck,” Christenson said.
Matos had particular trouble coming in on balls, with singles dinked in front of him too often. On Friday, he said he has resolved that.
“I was playing too far back and wasn’t able to get to some balls,” Matos said, with Erwin Higueros interpreting. “There were some I dived for, and they got past me. Out of all the outfielders last year, I think I was the one who was playing a little bit farther back, so this year, I concentrated on making sure that I was able to compensate to be able to get to the short flyballs.”