SAN RAMON — Prior to the second leg of the Giants’ FanFest tour, outfielder Jung Hoo Lee described his brief detainment at the Los Angeles International Airport on Wednesday evening as a “misunderstanding this one time” and said he was glad everything had been sorted out.
“Obviously, a bit hectic the last few days, but I’m glad everything’s worked out,” Lee said through team interpreter Brian Kang.
Lee said he had all the paperwork he typically brings when he flies into the country, adding that he spent a little over four hours at the airport. He declined to specify what paperwork he was missing.
Justin Han, Lee’s interpreter, also had “passport issues” but will fly into the country next week. Lee said he did not think the current political climate had anything to do with his temporary detainmnent.
“I don’t think there’s anything specific that I’m too worried about in that sense,” Lee said. “I’m just glad it got resolved and I’m back with my teammates.”
Earlier this month, 17 members of the Giants organization visited Lee in South Korea as part of a goodwill tour, a group that included president of baseball operations Buster Posey, general manager Zack Minasian, new manager Tony Vitello and shortstop Willy Adames.
Lee said the trip is “something that I won’t forget for the rest of my life,” one of the highlights being when he took the contingent out for Korean BBQ. Lee also brough Adames and Vitello on a tour of Namdaemun Market while Posey and Minasian met with Heo Koo-Youn, the commissioner of the KBO.
Additionally, the Giants put on a baseball clinic at LG Champion’s Park for 30 local hgh school players. Lee and Shane Robinson, one of the new coaches under Vitello, coached outfield drills while Adames and Jae-Gyun Hwang, a former Giant, conducted infield drills.
“It’s pretty evident the support that the Giants have in my home country in South Korea,” Lee said. “It’s pretty cool to see the fans rallying around the team and getting excited about us over here in San Francisco. It’s really cool to see the Giants investing and putting a bigger focus in my home country, and I’m really excited to keep that momentum going.”
Said Vitello of the trip last Saturday: “A lot of meals and breaking bread with everybody. For me, being in my first year, it was great to be around any of those people. Even Willy, who I’d spent a lot of time with in person, it provided a better opportunity to get to know him.”
Lee will soon return to Asia for the World Baseball Classic as one of the star players for South Korea, which has never won the tournament.