SAN FRANCISCO — Harrison Bader is the new center fielder for the San Francisco Giants, so that means Jung Hoo Lee will be moving to right field.
And the Korean star is apparently all-in for the switch after speaking with new manager Tony Vitello and general manager Zack Minasian. Bader, too, can’t wait to get going with his new teammates this spring and insists constant communication will be the key to everyone getting on the same page in a hurry.
Bader played left field last year for the first time in his nine-year career.
“We have talked to Jung Hoo, Tony’s talked to him, Zack spoke with him earlier,” president of baseball operations Buster Posey said Friday. “Jung Hoo is great. Also, there’s an understanding on our end and to Jung Hoo that there’s a chance that Jung Hoo can still be getting reps in center field, but our plan is to have Bader play in center field.”
Bader finalized his $20.5 million, two-year contract — and the Giants believe with his addition they will have a far-improved defensive outfield going forward. Lee will soon have a chance to become more comfortable with San Francisco’s unique right-field wall with a nearly identical one at one of the club’s spring training sites in Arizona. Heliot Ramos returns in left field.
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The 31-year-old Bader batted .277 with 17 home runs, 54 RBIs and an 0.796 OPS in 146 combined games with Minnesota and Philadelphia last season — setting career highs in all those categories. He is eager to steal more bases.
“Basically going into the free agency for the third time this year I really just wanted to find a home,” Bader said, saying a “winning culture” was his focus. “… You always want to be an everyday player.”
This will be the farthest West he has played — and his new “home” features challenges such as wind, mist and wild bounces.
“The outfield defensively can certainly be tricky,” Bader said, noting he plans to familiarize himself with it as quickly as possible.
Posey said the Giants had been aiming to acquire Bader all offseason.
“He’s a great fit for us, he’s a guy who’s going to play hard, play fearless in the outfield,” Posey said.
Lee is still expected to be the center fielder for Korea in the World Baseball Classic, something the Giants support him doing.
The 27-year-old Lee signed a $113 million, six-year contract with the Giants in December 2023. He missed most of his rookie season in 2024 after dislocating his left shoulder crashing into an outfield wall and needing season-ending surgery.
This past year, when the Giants missed the playoffs for the fourth straight season and fired manager Bob Melvin, Lee batted .266 with eight home runs and 55 RBIs with 10 stolen bases over 150 games — 144 of those being starts in center field.
“Jung Hoo has played right field before, I think he’s a pretty instinctual player, and expecting him to transition over there very easily,” Minasian said. “But we’ll try to get some familiarity on that Papago backfield and then he’ll get some reps out there during the spring.”
