Matos starts center fielder for 3 consecutive games after Lee Jeong-hoo leaves

With Lee Jeong-hoo (San Francisco Giants) leaving due to a shoulder injury, the club appears to be looking for a replacement.

NBC Sports Bay Area, USA, reported on the 17th (Korean time), “San Francisco is looking forward to the performance of Luis Matos in center field, where Lee Jeong-hoo is missing.”

The media said, “The on-base percentage of San Francisco's center fielders ranked 28th in the major leagues over the past two seasons. “It was expected that these concerns would be resolved with the addition of Lee Jeong-hoo, but the remainder of the season may be canceled due to Lee Jeong-hoo's shoulder injury,” he explained.

Lee Jeong-hoo, who was the team's number one hitter and center fielder, suffered a dislocated left shoulder after colliding with the fence while playing defense in the top of the first inning against the Cincinnati Reds on the 13th.

While structural damage to joints, ligaments, etc. was confirmed in the MRI examination, I met Dr. Neil Elatrace on the 16th and received a second opinion. Dr. Elatrace is an authority in this field who also performed surgeries on Ryu Hyun-jin (Hanwha Eagles) in 2015 (shoulder) and 2022 (elbow) when he was playing in the major league.

While Dr. Elatrace's opinion has not yet been made public, local media is predicting the possibility of Lee Jeong-hoo's surgery. If that happens, he may have difficulty returning within the season.

The media cited an alternative source as saying, “It seems likely that Lee Jeong-hoo will return after undergoing surgery,” and “Matos is expected to start as a center fielder while Lee Jeong-hoo is absent.” Matos, who debuted in the big league last year wearing a San Francisco uniform, has appeared in 5 games this year, recording 4 hits in 16 at-bats, 1 home run, and 6 RBIs. After Lee Jeong-hoo left, he started as a center fielder for three consecutive games. He also showed impressive defense in the game against the LA Dodgers held on the 16th. In the top of the fourth inning, Dodgers' Teoscar Hernández's batted ball extended toward the right-center wall. Matos jumped right in front of the fence and caught the batted ball. It was very similar to Lee Jeong-hoo's injury scene, even hitting his left arm against the fence at the end. Matos succeeded in catching the batted ball without injury. NBC Sports Bay Area said, “San Francisco coach Bob Melvin plans to be patient and watch (Matos' adaptation). Matos has played all three outfield positions since the spring, but we expect he can make a difference by focusing solely on center field.” 한국야동