He Is More Cautious About Returning From Injury

Poor performance and injuries. Kim Ha-seong (San Diego Padres) once dreamed of a batting average of .300 and becoming the first Asian infielder to hit 20 (home runs) and 20 (stealing bases), but now even his return within the season cannot be guaranteed. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that he is still an underrated player.

On the 21st (Korean time), the U.S. Bleacher Report selected '10 unsung MLB heroes of the 2023 season' and said, "The 10 teams most likely to advance to the 2023 postseason include players who have not often appeared in the headlines despite providing a lot of value. “I chose it,” he said.

San Diego was not included in the 10 teams due to difficulty advancing to fall baseball, but the media did not leave out Kim Ha-seong's name.

Bleacher Report said, "In addition to the 10 teams that are likely to advance to the playoffs, there are 9 other teams that have won at least 48% of the games this season. We also briefly introduce the unsung heroes of each team," and in San Diego, Kim Ha-seong is an 'unsung hero.' It was selected as

The media said, “Ha-Sung Kim has not been as productive over the past month as he was in mid-August, but there was a time not too long ago when he caught the attention of all players except Ohtani in terms of bWAR.” “Juan Soto, Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr. “He doesn’t grab the headlines like Xander Bogaerts, but he has excellent defense, solid hitting, and 36 stolen bases, making him San Diego’s MVP.”

It is an assessment that is difficult to disagree with. Ha-seong Kim was named to the final three National League (NL) shortstop Gold Glove awards last season thanks to his outstanding defense, but his weaknesses were revealed in his batting.

But this year was different. He stagnated somewhat until May, but rebounded with a batting average of 0.291 in June and showed his peak batting ability with a batting average of 0.337 in July. Amid this upward trend, his batting average rose to 0.290 and OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) to 0.840 in August.

According to Baseball Reference, which places more emphasis on defensive value than FanGraphs, one of the representative baseball statistics sites, he ranked second in win-against-replacement contribution (bWAR) after Shohei Ohtani (LAA).

Even after moving to second base this season, he performed at a Gold Glove level and also showed off his presence as a shortstop and third baseman. In addition, he started stealing bases in earnest, stealing bases 35 times. He showed off his self-effacing base running play in every game, to the point where his helmet came off.

The problem was physical strength. In the last 30 games, the batting average was low at 0.200 (24 hits in 120 at-bats) and OPS at 0.551, and the batting average has already fallen to 0.265 and OPS to 0.763.

“It’s a really, really long season. I’m working on my body,” he said in an interview with local media outlet the San Diego Union-Tribune. “I’m doing everything I can to stay fresh, play at a high level, and help the team win.” “I am trying to do my best. Maintaining my physical strength seems to be my job,” he said, indirectly revealing that he had reached his physical limit, leading us to speculate on the cause of his sluggish performance.

In the end, I got sick. He was left out of the starting lineup for four consecutive games after the away game against the Oakland Athletics on the 17th. This is because of abdominal pain whose cause is clearly known. Coach Bob Melvin is optimistic about Kim Ha-seong's speedy return, but concerns are growing as the pain continues and even the medical staff cannot determine the cause.

The San Diego Union-Tribune said, "Ha-sung Kim was one of the most stable players in San Diego throughout the season. Even while the team was going through ups and downs, he was consistent in his performance throughout," and "Ha-sung Kim's appearance this season was the first sign of the San Diego franchise." "It was a good sign for Ha-seong Kim. It remains to be seen when Ha-seong Kim will return, but San Diego will handle it carefully to prevent anything else from happening. Especially considering the team's ranking, it is reasonable to approach Ha-seong Kim cautiously."

Ha-seong Kim will qualify as a free agent (FA) after the end of next season. There are also predictions that San Diego will offer a long-term contract to Kim Ha-seong, who has shown outstanding performance. This is why the league has no choice but to pay closer attention to the physical condition of Kim Ha-seong, who has emerged as a player of note.