Will he meet his old teammate Lee Jung-hoo again on the Major League stage? Infielder Kim Ha-sung, who is expected to go to the San Francisco Giants, has been selected as the No. 1 major hitter among the FA hitters, and is expecting a big hit in the FA contract.
MLB.com introduced an article on the 27th (Korea Standard Time) called “FA hitters with the best weapons in each sector.”
The article evaluated players based on the five tools that are commonly called. The five tools are contact, strength, main focus, defense, and throwing.
Among them, Kim Ha-sung was rated as the No. 1 player in the main category. “Not many of the FA players possess speed, but Kim Ha-sung has the ability to use his natural flagship skill and the ability to utilize the flagship skill in games,” MLB.com said. “Kim Ha-sung’s sprint speed is 28.3 feet per second, which ranks among the top 25 percent in the Major League. This is higher than the average 27 feet per second in the Major League. Kim Ha-sung stole 22 bases this season and 38 steals this season last year. He has successfully stole a total of 60 bases at 28.4 feet per second over the past two years.”
There was an FA player who had a fast sprint speed compared to Kim Ha-sung. It was outfielder Garrett Hampson. However, Hampson stayed at seven steals this season.
MLB.com(에볼루션카지노) said, “Garrett Hampson is the fastest at 29.8 feet per second when looking at the sprint speed, but he doesn’t run as often as Kim Ha-sung. Kim Ha-sung’s flagship has a greater impact on stolen bases during the game. Kim Ha-sung continued to praise him, saying, “He is a player who shows both his own flagship and his flagship in the game.”
Prior to the 2021 season, Kim Ha-sung signed a four-plus-one-year contract with San Diego for up to $39 million (about KRW 53.8 billion). During his four seasons with San Diego, Kim Ha-sung recorded a career-high 540 games, batting average of 0.242, 418 hits, 47 homers, 200 RBIs, 78 steals, and OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 0.706.
Kim Ha-sung played in 121 games in the 2024 season and recorded a batting average of 0.233, 94 hits, 11 homers, 47 RBIs, 22 steals, 60 points, a on-base percentage of 0.326, and a slugging percentage of 0.380. In the second half of the 2024 season, Kim Ha-sung was ruled out for the season after suffering a shoulder injury during the first base return. Kim Ha-sung became the first Asian infielder to win the Gold Glove National League Utility Division last year.
Earlier, MLB.com predicted Kim’s destination in San Francisco. “San Francisco’s Buster Posey mentioned strengthening shortstop. Then, we can use Tyler Fitzgerald in more diverse roles,” MLB.com said. “Kim Ha-sung once played baseball with manager Bob Melvin in the San Diego Padres. San Francisco outfielder Lee Jung-hoo is also a close friend of Kim Ha-sung who served as teammates in Korea.”
If Kim Ha-sung heads to San Francisco, he can show how he plays on the same team with Lee Jung-hoo for the first time in five years after the 2020 season. If Lee Jung-hoo and Kim Ha-sung perform together on a team as five-tool players, they are expected to give San Francisco a great boost.
Meanwhile, MLB.com selected Juan Soto as the number one contact among the five tools, Christian Walker (Infield) and Harrison Bader (Outfield) as the number one defense, Pete Alonso as the number one power, and Willie Adames (Infield) and Alex Verdugo (Outfield) as the number one throw.