Giants fans are making it feel like the 2010s again, Ali Wunderman writes.
Fifty-one of them — including two infants — entered team lore earlier this month. The “Hoo Lee Gans,” a play on hooligans, first sported matching customized shirts and outrageous, flame-like wigs on April 7 in support of rising star Jung Hoo Lee .
The South Korean outfielder, of course, wears No. 51. There was no way to miss them during the Giants’ 2-0 home loss to the Cincinnati Reds that night, nor when I scrolled through Instagram and saw one friend after the next decked out in Hoo Lee Gan attire. Major League Baseball’s social media accounts took quick notice, too, with an X post highlighting the Hoo Lee Gans garnering more than 400,000 views and an Instagram post with more than 100,000 likes as of press time “I’m having one of the best weeks of my life,” says Kyle Smeallie, co-organizer of the Hoo Lee Gans and policy director for the San Francisco Community Land Trust, an organization which helps keep San Franciscans at risk of being displaced in their homes. Smeallie said he initially hoped to land on the Oracle Park video board. But within hours, he was doing interviews for local media, receiving phone calls from around the world — including from Korean press — and getting nonstop direct messages from other Giants fans wanting to get involved. That gave way to elation — not because the Hoo Lee Gans got attention, but for building community in The City that he loves. “Even as we're doing the important organizing work to address the needs of people who are suffering, we also need to be finding ways to express joy together,” he said. With everything that’s happening in the world, it’s hard not to agree with Smeallie that there is a real need to come together, build community, and have fun. Is it just me, or does this feel like the Dynasty days again? Back to the days of Brian Wilson refusing to ditch his orange shoes, ubiquitous Pablo Sandoval-inspired panda merchandise across the ballpark, and San Francisco coming together, year after year, to cheer for a perpetual — and perpetually successful — underdog the best way we know how: by being ourselves. Ex // Top Stories Trump admin. dismisses, pauses probes of SF crypto firms SEC’s move to end contentious enforcement actions against cryptocurrency companies follows big donationsTasting San Francisco’s boozy origins at Comstock Saloon The Pisco Punch was created and beloved in The City in the latter half of the 19th century It does to Smeallie, who said those unforgettable years coincided with his arrival in The City. Those personality-heavy teams made an impression on him, but winning the World Series three times in six years didn’t hurt, either. “I do think that there is a specific San Francisco spirit to it; to do it with irreverence,” says Smeallie, a ballplayer himself who understands the magnetism of the game when it’s played with a true sense of joy. Many of the founding Hoo Lee Gans are community organizers, according to Smeallie, and they share hope that what they’re doing demonstrates the joy and humanity for which San Francisco is historically known. They know better than anyone that with a strong sense of community in place, we will be better equipped to collaborate on addressing real problems. “I hope that resonates in San Francisco,” Smeallie says. “I hope that resonates outside of San Francisco, too.” The Hoo Lee Gans are a little more than a week old, but it’s safe to say this is just the start. The same can be said for Lee, who is crushing it: As The Athletic’s Andy McCullough noted Tuesday, Lee entered the day on pace to shatter Babe Ruth’s single-season record for extra-base hits. “I would like to note that during our conversation, blasted a 3-run homer in his first at-bat at Yankee Stadium,” Smeallie texted me April 11 after our call. Lee hit two more dingers at The House That Jeter Built, as the Giants won two of three against the defending American League champions. While the Hoo Lee Gans discuss with the Giants how exactly they can partner on spreading the good vibes, fans can check out the group’s newly launched website, and sign up to become a Hoo Lee Gan. I know I’m feeling the vibes that the Hoo Lee Gans are putting out there. I’ve attended two games so far — one sitting in the bleachers when we swept the Seattle Mariners, and one sitting in the nosebleeds when we won against the Reds thanks to an extra-innings splash hit — and both felt like a far cry from the days when people used Giants games to flex their social clout or didn’t show up at all. Sure, it helps that San Francisco has won 12 of its first 17 games, but it feels like we are winning at more than just baseball.
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