Dodgers’ Kim prevails over Giants’ Lee in first MLB meeting

Kim Hye-seong of the Los Angeles Dodgers got the upper hand in his first all-Korean showdown against Lee Jung-hoo of the San Francisco Giants.

Kim went 1-for-4 with an RBI as the Dodgers defeated the Giants 11-5 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on Saturday (local time).

Lee went 0-for-4 with a walk in the loss.

This was the first regular-season meeting in Major League Baseball (MLB) between the two former teammates on the Kiwoom Heroes in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO).

Lee and Kim were both drafted out of high school in 2016 and made their KBO debuts in 2017. The two friends played together until Lee left to sign with the Giants after the 2023 season.

Then following the 2024 campaign, Kim joined his pal in the National League West, signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

In Saturday’s game, Lee started in center field at batted leadoff, while Kim got the start at second base and batted ninth.

Kim, who lined out in his first at-bat in the bottom second, dropped a two-out RBI single in front of Lee in the bottom third to extend the Dodgers’ lead to 7-0.

Kim flied out to left field in the bottom fifth before lining out in the same direction in the bottom seventh.

He is batting .382/.425/.544 in 30 games this season with two homers and 11 RBIs.

Lee drew a walk against starter Clayton Kershaw to open the game, and flied out to right field in the top third.

In the top sixth, Lee struck out swinging on Kershaw’s patented, 12-6 curveball. Lee lined out to new second baseman Tommy Edman in the top ninth, moments after Edman took over from Kim and Kim moved to center field.

Lee came out for the second time in the ninth inning as the Giants scored five times but grounded out to Edman to end the game.

After a hitless day, Lee is hitting .266/.329/.430 in 69 games with six homers and 32 RBIs.

This was the second of the 13 games scheduled between the Dodgers and the Giants this season. Kim did not play in Friday’s game.

The two teams’ next meeting will be a three-game set at Oracle Park in San Francisco from July 11 to 13.

Kim and Lee are the only South Korean players in MLB at the moment.