San Francisco Giants' Potential Breakout Star Has Something to Prove

The San Francisco Giants' breakout star of 2025 may be the player they were hoping would be their breakout star last season.

May 8, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; San Francisco Giants outfielder Jung Hoo Lee (51) during the game against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The San Francisco Giants have entered the offseason as a team that is looking to improve after some poor years of late.

After another losing season in 2024, the Giants made a big change to their front office. Former All-Star catcher, Buster Posey, is now the president of baseball operations. The former star is now tasked with trying to turn around his former team, and so far he has made some notable moves.

This offseason, a priority for San Francisco was to improve their lineup. The last campaign was very lackluster at times with a lack of power and run producers in the middle of the order. In free agency, Posey was able to sign shortstop Willy Adames to fill that void.

The Giants have struggled to sign free agents of that caliber in recent years, and that was a major reason why they have struggled and made the changes in the front office. With the addition of Adames, the lineup looks much better on paper. However, they will be looking for some of their other players to step up.

Maria Guardado of MLB.com recently wrote about who could be the breakout star for the Giants in 2025. She chose their big signing from last winter, outfielder Jung Hoo Lee, who unfortunately missed most of his first year in the major leagues and played in just 37 games before season-ending shoulder surgery.

“Lee is expected to be full-go for Spring Training and should slot back in at center field and possibly the leadoff spot, where the Giants still believe he can be a dynamic offensive force due to his elite contact skills," she wrote.

The loss of Lee for most of the season in 2024 certainly had an impact on the lineup for San Francisco. The 26-year-old was expected to be the table setter at the top of the order with his ability to get on base as a strong contact hitter.

It was a very small sample size of just 37 games, but the right-hander hit .262 with two home runs, eight RBIs, and four doubles.

The former regime of the Giants made a big commitment to Lee last winter, signing him to a six-year, $113 million deal coming over from Japan. While San Francisco is by no means a small market team, they will be relying on him to produce at a high level in 2025 to make that contract worth it.

If the 26-year-old is healthy and batting at the top of the order, he could have a lot of success with an improved lineup behind him. Having Adames, Heliot Ramos, and Matt Chapman now in the middle of the order, the Giants should be able to drive in runs at a much higher clip in 2025.

While expectations for the young center fielder are high, he is primed for a breakout season as long as he can stay healthy for San Francisco.