Pittsburgh — Hao-Yu Lee warned him.
Five years ago, former big-leaguer Yu Chang visited a Nike camp in Taiwan that Lee participated in. Chang, until Monday, held the record for most hits in a season by a Taiwanese playing in the big leagues.
“I always told him, five years after this, I will come see you,” Lee said, smiling.
Five years later, Lee, on a night where he reached base five times, whacked his 55th hit of his rookie season Monday in the Tigers’ 8-5 win. One better than Chang’s national record.
“My bad,” Lee said, laughing.
Lee also became the first Taiwanese player to reach base five times in a game and he’s on his way to setting a lot more firsts for players from his country. Which, by the way, is not what he’s set out to do.
“I don’t really feel anything about it,” Lee said. “Of course I knew. The internet always points it out. I just try to compete. My goal is not to be the best Taiwanese player. I’m trying to be a great player in America.”
He was asked if he felt a sense of pride, just setting a bar for future players from his country to strive for.
“Not so much,” he said. “This just comes from playing baseball. Now being able to extend those records, the more the better.”
Chang played parts of five seasons in the big leagues from 2019-23 and had season highs of nine homers, 39 RBIs and 32 runs scored in 2021. Lee, who has six homers, 30 RBIs and 21 runs, is right on his tail in those categories, too.
@cmccosky
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Tigers' Hao-Yu Lee sets single-season hit record for Taiwanese players