Jung Hoo

Lee

Lee has really struggled since a 3-for-4 effort last week, and he’s gone hitless over his last five games. He’ll take a seat with Drew Gilbert playing center and Jerar Encarnacion handling right.

Lee hit one of five homers on the night for the Giants, as neither Nabil Crismatt or Anthony DeSclafani was able to fool the San Francisco lineup. Lee’s homer was the eighth of the season, and that along with two singles pushed his average to .271 with a .752 OPS. It’s not even a remotely dominant season, but there’s been enough good moments from Lee to suggest he has a long-term future — and very likely a fantasy-relevant one — in this league.

Lee started a four-run uprising with a leadoff single in the fourth inning, then scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Drew Gilbert. He then smacked an RBI triple off of Ryan Fernandez in the seventh inning and scored on an RBI single off the bat of Casey Schmitt. With his four-hit night, the 27-year-old outfielder is now hitting .267/.330/.414 with seven homers, 49 RBI and 10 stolen bases on the season.

The Giants got things started as Casey Schmitt smacked a one-out single into center off of Cubs’ closer Daniel Palencia. Wilmer Flores then followed with a single of his own, moving the winning run into scoring position. Christian Koss pinch ran for Schmitt and raced around to score as Lee deposited a 1-1 slider into right field for the game-winning knock. The 27-year-old outfielder finished the day 2-for-4 and is now hitting .261/.323/.409 with seven long balls, 48 RBI and 10 stolen bases on the season.

Lee took Nick Pivetta deep for a solo homer to open the game. It would be the only run the Giants could manage on the day. Lee added a double in the fifth and has hit safely in 16 of his last 17 contests. The 27-year-old outfielder is hitting .262/.325/.417 with seven homers, 61 runs scored, 47 RBI, and ten steals across 499 plate appearances.

It’ll be interesting to see how that plays out. Rafael Devers, Matt Chapman and Willy Adames aren’t much for routine days off. The Giants are certainly committed to those three and probably Jung Hoo Lee, Heliot Ramos and Patrick Bailey as 2026 regulars, leaving openings at second, in right field and at DH. But the first two of those spots are currently occupied by younger players anyway in Casey Schmitt and Drew Gilbert. We wouldn’t expect much to change with the core group going forward. Marco Luciano, Luis Matos and maybe Wade Meckler could get looks between the outfield and the DH spot.

As a team, the Giants were only able to muster four total hits in the ballgame — all of them singles — so Lee wasn’t the only culprit in the loss. He has had a disappointing season overall at the plate, slashing .256/.322/.405 with six homers, 46 RBI and eight stolen bases.

Lee drove in the only run of the game for the Giants on a fielder’s choice. He singled twice and doubled to improve his average to .254 on the season. After his disastrous June, Lee has been much better in July with a .314 average over 66 at-bats.

It’s notable that Mike Yastrzemski is hitting fifth against Blue Jays veteran José Berríos after leading off most of the year against right-handed starters. Lee seems to have re-discovered his swing recently, batting .304 (7-for-23) with three RBI over his last seven games. The 26-year-old doesn’t offer big-time power/speed combo upside, but a permanent move to the leadoff spot would have boost his fantasy appeal.

Lee tripled in two runs in the fourth, and he picked up an infield single that scored a run two innings later. The 26-year-old was a disaster in June with a slash of .143/.277/.274, but he’s now hitting .366 in the month of July. A smaller sample, obviously, but it’s encouraging to see some success after those struggles.