Bellinger-Soto-Lee Jung-hoo, center fielder market is fluctuating
Attention is focused on which center fielder the New York Yankees will recruit this winter. Depending on the Yankees' choice, the market situation surrounding Lee Jung-hoo is likely to change significantly.
MLB.com, the official major league media, said on the 25th (Korean time), “The Yankees are widely known as the strongest candidates to recruit Cody Bellinger. However, there is one reason why the Yankees may not want Bellinger more than you think,” he said, analyzing the possibility of the Yankees recruiting Bellinger.
Bellinger is a special hitter who won the National League MVP award in 2019 with a batting average of .305 (170 hits in 558 at-bats), 47 home runs, 115 RBI, and an OPS of 1.035 in 156 games. However, he experienced a gradual decline after that, and last year, he only recorded a batting average of .201 (106 hits in 504 at-bats), 19 home runs, 68 RBIs, and an OPS of .654 in 144 games.
Bellinger, who was eventually released by the Dodgers as a non-tender, signed a one-year contract with the Cubs for $17.5 million. And he succeeded in rebounding this year by hitting .307 in 130 games (153 hits in 499 at-bats), 26 home runs, 97 RBI, and an OPS of .881. Bellinger, who qualified as a free agent at the end of the season, is considered the biggest center fielder in this free agent market.
Players currently attracting attention in the major league center fielder market include Bellinger, Juan Soto (San Diego), and Lee Jung-hoo (Kiwoom). Soto is San Diego's leading hitter who played with Ha-seong Kim this year. He played in 162 games this year with a batting average of .207, 5 ERA (156 hits in 568 at-bats), 35 home runs, 109 RBI, and an OPS of .930. Soto is likely to hit the trade market as there is only one year left until free agency.
Lee Jeong-hoo, who is considered the best hitter in Korea, is knocking on the door of the major league through posting. In 884 games in the KBO League, he recorded a batting average of .304 (1,181 hits in 3,476 at-bats), 65 home runs, 515 RBIs, and an OPS of .898. Although the season ended early this year due to injury, he batted at .3018 in 86 games (105 hits in 330 at-bats). He achieved good results with 6 home runs, 45 RBIs, and an OPS of .861.
The Yankees are keeping the possibility of recruiting Bellinger, Soto, and Lee Jung-hoo open. In particular, in the market surrounding Bellinger, he is considered the most likely candidate. However, MLB.com said, “MLB Network Insider Jon Heyman said the Yankees want a slugger with a hard hit percentage (percentage of balls hit with an exit velocity of 95 mph or higher) that is above the league average. Bellinger's hard hit percentage was 31.4%, staying in the bottom 10%. “This could be a problem,” he pointed out.
The possibility of Soto being traded is also complicating the market situation. MLB.com said, “The availability of Soto made the negotiations more complicated. The Yankees would go all out if they could sign Soto. “Soto, who had the fourth highest hard hit percentage (55.3%) this year, is more in line with the Yankees’ philosophy,” he analyzed.
If the Yankees succeed in recruiting Soto, Bellinger and Lee Jung-hoo will remain on the market. San Francisco, which is showing great interest in Lee Jung-hoo to the extent that general manager Pete Putilla personally visited Gocheok Sky Dome to watch Lee Jung-hoo's final at-bat in Kiwoom's final home game, is also targeting Bellinger. Bellinger is a hitter who spent his prime at the rival Dodgers, but there are many instances in which he went back and forth between San Francisco and the Dodgers before. Most teams looking to reinforce center field, including San Francisco, have both Bellinger and Lee Jung-hoo as candidates.