Invited player to San Francisco MLB camp A different identity from Lee Jeong-hoo

Japanese hitter Yoshitomo Tsutsugo (32) will join the American professional baseball team's San Francisco Giants major league spring camp as an "invited player."

On the 9th (Korean time), San Francisco revealed the names of 25 players not included in the 40-man roster who will train at the big league camp.

Tsutsugo's name can be seen among the infielders.

Tsutsugo, who signed a minor league contract with San Francisco, is aiming to enter the big league through spring camp.

The situation is different from Lee Jung-hoo, who has not yet debuted in the big leagues, but is recognized by the San Francisco team as the starting center fielder and top hitter.

Lee Jeong-hoo, who attempted to advance to the major leagues through the posting system (private competitive bidding), signed a six-year contract with San Francisco for $113 million (approximately 150.3 billion won) in December last year.

San Francisco has classified Lee Jung-hoo as a 'starting center fielder' and is actively using him in marketing.

San Francisco, which has set up a camp in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA, will have pitchers and catchers gathering on the 16th, and fielders will begin official training starting on the 21st.

Lee Jeong-hoo is already training in Arizona, USA.

Tsutsugo, who established himself as a slugger representing Japanese professional baseball by playing as the fourth hitter for the Japanese national team in the 2017 World Baseball Classic (WBC), entered the big league by signing with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2020.

However, he failed to make a soft landing in the big leagues.

From 2020 to 2022, he played in 182 major league games wearing the uniforms of Tampa Bay, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Pittsburgh Pirates, recording only a batting average of 0.197, 18 home runs, 75 RBI, and OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) of 0.630.

In 2023, when he started the season wearing the Texas Rangers uniform, he could not stand on the big league stage at all.

Tsutsugo, who signed a minor league contract with San Francisco in August of last year, declined the Japanese professional baseball team's offer to return and remained in San Francisco as a minor leaguer this year.

Most players who joined the major league camp as invited players return to the minor league in mid-March.

Despite the 'low probability', he chose the difficult path and attempted to re-enter the big league. 섯다