MLB.com, the official website of the U.S. Major League Baseball, selected Kim Ha-seong as the ‘most improved player for the San Diego Padres this season.’ 안전놀이터
On the 14th (Korean time), MLB.com highlighted Ha-seong Kim through an article that selected one of the ‘players who improved the most this season’ for each club.
San Diego professional reporter AJ Casabel, who chose Ha-seong Kim, wrote in an article, “Ronald Acuña Jr. (Atlanta Braves) and Mookie Betts (LA Dodgers) are competing fiercely for the National League (NL) Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) this season, and Matt He introduced Ha-seong Kim by saying, “Everyone knows that Olson (Atlanta) and Freddie Freeman (Dodgers) are chasing them,” and then added, “But do you know who is ranked 5th in win contribution (WAR) compared to replacement players in the NL?” introduced.
In fact, according to Baseball Reference, an American baseball statistics website, Kim Ha-seong’s WAR is 5.7, ranking 5th highest in the league after Betts (8.1), Acuña Jr. (7.6), Olson (6.4), and Freeman (6.2). He was once ranked first in the NL and second overall in the league behind Shohei Ohtani (LA Angels). Kim Ha-seong, who has continued to perform well in offense and defense, including a batting average of 0.268, 17 home runs, and 35 stolen bases, is having his best season, putting his name in the top ranks of WAR.
Accordingly, the media introduced, “Kim Ha-seong is one of the few bright spots in the Padres, who are recording poor performance this season.” The media introduced various indicators such as his stolen bases, batting average, and on-base percentage (0.358) and said, “Kim Ha-seong has grown into an elite leadoff player, ranking second in the NL in the number of pitches per on-base.” In addition, the media said, “There is no player in the team who can keep up with Kim Ha-sung’s defense. He praised him, saying, “He played a good role wherever the team needed him, including second base and third base.”