“It is special to watch Kim Ha-seong play as a shortstop.”
Will Ha-seong Kim return to shortstop 바카라사이트 in the 2024 season by pushing out Zander Bogatz (above San Diego Padres)? Can the 39 million dollar (52.4 billion won) second baseman push out the shortstop who signed a free agent contract for 280 million dollars (about 376 billion won) and came to San Diego?
If this had come out before the lid opened this season, I would have been treated like a madman. Surprisingly, however, the American media began to bring this up. Sports Illustrated’s San Diego Fan Nation Inside the Padres mentioned ‘shortstop Kim Ha-seong’ as above on the 21st (hereinafter Korean time).
Ha-seong Kim played the 2022 season as a full-time shortstop and was nominated for a Gold Glove. However, San Diego recruited Bogatz to strengthen the batting line and moved Kim Ha-seong to second base. When the lid is opened, Kim Ha-seong’s defense, not to mention his batting, is the best in the team.
Ha-seong Kim’s batting pace slightly dropped from mid-August. Still, he shows great pace in the second half. In 120 games, he has a batting average of 0.278, 16 homers, 45 RBIs, 69 points, 27 stolen bases, an on-base percentage of 0.369, a slugging percentage of 0.439, and an OPS of 0.808.
In 119 games, the batting average is 0.265, 13 homers, 42 RBIs, 56 runs, 0.395 slugging percentage, 0.339 on-base percentage, and OPS of 0.714. In San Diego, Bogatz was brought in and Kim Ha-seong moved to second base, but it turned out to be ineffective this season. Of course, Bogatz is having a rather sluggish season this year, and there is a possibility of a rebound in the long term.
Crucially, there is no player on the team with more defensive power than Kim Ha-seong. Ha-seong Kim’s defensive WAR is 2.0 based on the baseball reference, which is 4th overall in the major leagues. He is fifth among second basemen in the major leagues with a fielding percentage of 0.991. Also, based on fan graphs, DRS is 16 and OAA is 7.
Inside the Padres said, “Ha-sung Kim’s defense helped the Padres put up the fourth-best defense in the major leagues, and helped pitchers pitch the best in the National League.” He said, “Next year, while Bogatz plays in a different position, Kim Ha-seong, who was nominated for the Gold Glove last year, may play as shortstop again.”
Recently, manager Bob Melvin praised Kim Ha-seong for his defensive skills. Inside the Padres said, “It is special to watch Kim Ha-seong play as a shortstop. In baseball, most people overlook the importance of defense. It’s nice to see Melvin valuing his defense so highly. The Padres are performing below expectations, but Kim Ha-sung is not. I want to claim that he is San Diego’s MVP this season.”
Of course, the possibility of Kim Ha-seong returning to shortstop is not an issue that can be easily decided. No matter how much Bogarts is inferior to Kim Ha-seong this year, major league clubs thoroughly return to business logic. Bogatz’s ransom cannot be ignored. Of course, if you look purely at defense, Ha-seong Kim is right for the starting shortstop, but this issue seems to have to be watched until this winter.