New Giants star Jung Hoo Lee thrills Bay Area Korean league fans, players
SAN LEANDRO -- On Opening Day, Giants fans' focus was directed at a rookie outfielder who is impacting the game on and off the home field.
That player is Jung Hoo Lee. Lee dominated South Korea's baseball league before coming to San Francisco.
For Ryan Doo, baseball isn't just a passion but a cultural connection to his early childhood in South Korea where baseball has exploded in popularity.
"It's one of the key sports that represents the United States and, along with that ally between the U.S. and Korea, we basically adopted that culture and Korea adopted to the sport as well so I think that's ... how Korea started to build a strong tie between their love of the sport and strong alliance between the U.S. and Korea," Doo told CBS News Bay Area.
Today, Doo leads the Bay Area's only Korean baseball league: the Bay Area Korean Baseball Association.
"Every Saturday, we laugh together, we sweat together, we run together on the field," Doo said. "My weekend job became nurturing and growing this baseball organization but I never forgot how to enjoy baseball as a sport."
Lee's debut with the Giants added to the popularity of the adult amateur league.
"When Jung Hoo Lee, one of the greatest players ever to join in the United States, came over this was huge news for everyone," Doo explained. "When you're sitting in the dugout before we go out and play we talk about him and that's what unites us. It's an unspoken thing. There's a Korean player that represents Korea."
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The Giants signed the Korean star in December as one of the hottest new players in the MLB to the tune of $113 million over six seasons.
He rose to fame as a center fielder for South Korea's Kiwoom Heroes, earning the title of MVP in 2022.
"When he landed in the San Francisco Bay Area, it was like 'Wow! Did that really happen?' And we, as Koreans, we like to stick together," Doo said.
He credits Lee for an uptick in enrollment in the local Korean baseball league which added a 10th team this season.
"We're next to each other at the dugout. We connect. We chat, 'How's your son doing? How's your daughter doing? How's school going?'" Doo said. "I think it means a lot to everyone."
