Mariners Player Profile: Dae-Ho Lee
By Ben Renner
Mariners first baseman Dae-Ho Lee came to the team to compete for a platoon share, but the 33-year old is a legend in Korea and Japan, and his impact has already been felt.
Dae-Ho Lee will turn 34 next month, yet he’s still a “rookie” by Major League Baseball standards despite his 15 seasons in the KBO and the JPPL. He has 323 home runs in his Japanese and Korean league career. Last year, for the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks, Lee slashed .282/.368/.524 with 30 doubles, 31 home runs, and 98 runs batted in.
Despite Lee’s distinguished career in the KBO and his legions of fans, he felt he still had something to prove. Instead of staying in the JPPL and riding out into the sunset as his bat speed slows, Lee decided to take a minor league offer from the Mariners to try and find a spot on a Major League Baseball club.
Dae-Ho Lee was part of Mariners General Manager Jerry Dipoto’s attempt to fix the first base position heading into 2016. He brought in Adam Lind to be the nominal starter, a specialist against right-handed pitching in his career. But Dipoto wisely didn’t stop there. He wanted to add more depth, so he brought in Dae-Ho Lee, the Japanese league legend and a Korean national hero to try and earn a lefty-bashing spot on the team.
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Dae-Ho Lee impressed in Spring Training, and his experience made him a good choice to hold down the first base position when a lefty took the mound for the opposition. As a part time player for the Mariners, Dae-Ho Lee has been mostly effective. A .254 batting average and a .293 on-base percentage are to be expected when a significant portion of your 75 plate appearances are pinch-hitting situations, but Lee also has six home runs, including a walk-off in April against the Texas Rangers.
Scouts report Dae-Ho Lee’s swing is little slow. He seems to wind up with a big leg kick before every swing. But when he’s made contact this season, the ball has gone a long way. He says it’s been a life-long dream to play in the Major Leagues, and that’s why he moved with his wife across the Pacific Ocean, enrolled in English language classes, and happily absorbed his 31 appearances so far for the Mariners. It’s rare to see an aging star humble himself just to get a shot at the big leagues.
If Dae-Ho Lee is bothered by the lack of playing time, it doesn’t show. And he should continue to get more opportunities. His six home runs in 75 plate appearances have produced a .507 slugging percentage so far. Having that kind of power on your bench is valuable. I hope Dae-Ho Lee can keep leg-kicking and hitting balls over the wall all season for manager Scott Servais and the Mariners.
Interestingly enough, Dae-Ho Lee has a connection to Ken Griffey Jr. In August of 2010, he hit his eighth consecutive home run in as many at-bats, tying the Mariners legend, who hit eight consecutive home runs in 1993. On August 14th, 2010, Dae-Ho Lee hit his ninth consecutive home run, breaking Griffey’s record. Lee won the Septuple Crown that year, leading the KBO in batting average, home runs, RBIs, runs scored, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and hits. No one in any major international league has hit more than Lee’s nine consecutive home runs.
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Even with more playing time, it’s unlikely the 33-year-old slugger can match his career heights in the Korean leagues, but it’s also unlikely Dae-Ho Lee has forgotten how to hit. Even if his swing is a little slow, it was still fast enough to catch up to six pitches he’s deposited over the fence so far in limited action. He figures to add to his career home run count this season in Seattle.