San Diego’s Petco Park chants of “Ha Sung Kim” have become all too familiar. He has become a superstar among superstars.
메이저놀이터Kim Ha-seong batted first and third against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2023 Major League Baseball (MLB) game at Petco Park in San Diego, California, USA, on the 25th (TUESDAY), launching a multi-homer game. He went 3-for-5 with two home runs, three RBIs, two runs scored and one walk. His batting average rose to 2 for 7 on the season and his OPS jumped from .784 to .810.
Kim’s bat exploded in the first inning. Kim led off the first inning with a two-pitch, one-strike at-bat, launching a four-pitch 92.8 mph fastball over the left-centre field fence for a solo shot. It was his 13th home run of the season and third leadoff blast.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, he cleared the fence again. Trailing 8-1 in the bottom of the fifth, with runners on first and second and two outs, he lifted a four-pitch 83.8-mph slider over the wall in left-centre. It was his 14th home run of the season and the first multi-homer game of his major league career. Despite the 4-8 loss, Kim’s performance was nothing short of spectacular. His two home runs accounted for three of the team’s four runs.
Not just recently, but all season long, Kim’s performance has been among the best on the team. Even amongst the highly paid superstars like Manny Machado ($17.09 million), Juan Soto ($23 million), Xander Bogaerts ($25.45 million), and Fernando Tatis Jr. ($7.71 million), he is performing like a superstar. Kim’s salary this year is $7 million.
For the season, Kim is currently batting .318 (86-for-318) with 14 home runs, 37 RBIs, 18 doubles, and an OPS of .810. If you limit the timeframe to July, his numbers jump to 3-for-22 (70 at-bats) with five home runs, 11 RBI, five doubles, and a .993 OPS. With his July breakout, he could become the first Asian infielder to join the 20-homer, 20-double club. Kim is on the verge of becoming the first Asian infielder to reach the milestone.
Despite not playing 25 games, Kim leads the team in both fWAR (Fangraphs Wins Above Replacement) and bWAR (Baseball-Reference Wins Above Replacement). His fWAR of 3.4 is third on the team, and his bWAR of 4.8 is first. It’s hard not to love a $7 million player performing like a $30 million player.
Ha Sung Kim and Bob Melvin /OSEN DB
Ha Sung Kim and Bob Melvin /OSEN DB
Despite Kim’s performance, San Diego manager Bob Melvin was disappointed to see the team concede so many goals. Speaking to local media, Melvin said, “We started the game with Kim’s home run, and it gave our team energy. It made the atmosphere in the stadium better and attracted more fans,” he said, adding that “once again, we gave up too many runs in the middle innings.”
Despite his performance, Kim reflected on the loss to last-place Pittsburgh and vowed to move forward. As a leader, he had a message for the team. “Unlike other sports, today’s result explains the sport of baseball. Even the top team can lose to the bottom team at any time. “They (Pittsburgh) played better and were more focused on the game. After today, we have to move on to tomorrow’s game, and we have to be more focused on tomorrow’s game.”