Was there a lead-off like this in the history of the major leagues?
San Diego Padres’ Kim Ha-seong’s stock price is hitting the highest price every day. Although he lost the July player of the month to Cody Bellinger of the Chicago Cubs, he is having the best summer of his life, marking a batting average of 0.337 (30 hits in 89 at-bats), 5 homers, 9 RBIs, 21 runs scored, and an OPS of 1.000 for the month of July.
In particular, he is pouring out his hidden skills all at once as he is used as a lead-off.
Kim Ha-seong played third base in the away game against the Colorado Rockies held at Coors Field on the 3rd (Korean time) and led the team to a 11-1 victory with 2 hits, 1 RBI, 3 runs and 2 walks in 3 at-bats. Kim Ha-seong pulled a 90.5 mile fastball from Colorado starter Kyle Freeland on the third pitch in the top of the first inning and connected it with a solo shot that went over the left fence and scored the first run.
The ball measured a launch angle of 29 degrees, an exit velocity of 103.1 mph, and a distance of 425 feet. Statcast said it was a hit that would have been a home run anywhere in the 30 Major League Baseball Stadiums.
In the second at-bat in the third inning, he walked and scored on Juan Soto’s two-run home run. In the fifth inning, he went out as the lead batter and hit to left, and after walking in the ninth inning, Fernando Tatis Jr.’s three-run home run scored his third run.
As Kim Ha-seong stands at the forefront of the lineup, San Diego’s scoring power is also doubling. San Diego scored a total of 102 points in 19 games played in the second half so far. With an average of 5.37 points per game, he is fourth in the NL in this category and second in the Western Division. Compared to the first half, they are scoring 0.91 more points per game.
San Diego’s first half scoring average was 4.46, which was 10th in the NL and 4th in the Western Division. It is evaluated that the team color of San Diego, which struggled due to weak batting line throughout the first half, has changed. It is thanks to the performance of No. 1 Kim Ha-sung. With tenacious ball vision, quick feet, slugging power when needed, and utility to cover second and third base and shortstop with top-notch defense, such a ‘revolutionary’ leadoff is historically rare.
Reporter AJ Casserbel, who is in charge of MLB.com’s San Diego, posted on his SNS after the game that day, “Ha-sung Kim hit his fourth leadoff home run this season. He is a true elite leadoff in almost every aspect. ‘He ranks second overall in pitches per at-bat, and marks a batting average of 0.318, on-base percentage of 0.425, and slugging percentage of 0.566 as the first hitter,’ he said.
As of this day, Kim Ha-seong’s baseball reference WAR (bWAR) is 5.4, second in the NL after Atlanta Braves Ronald Acuña Jr. (5.5). It was tied for first place until the day before, but on this day, Acuña Jr. swung a hard hit with 3 hits, 3 RBIs and 4 runs in 4 at-bats, including a home run against the Los Angeles Angels, to become the sole leader.
Acuña Junior is the leadoff representative of the major leagues. He has a batting average of 0.335 (141 hits in 421 bats), 25 homers, 64 RBIs, 97 runs scored, 51 stolen bases, and an OPS of 1.002 in 106 games this season. Leads the NL in runs scored, stolen bases, and OPS. He’s the strongest MVP candidate. It can be said that Kim Ha-seong is now competing with him for the WAR competition, and furthermore, for the best leadoff spot.토토사이트
Acuña Jr. made his major league debut in 2018 with a batting average of .293, 26 homers, 64 RBI, 78 runs scored, 16 stolen bases, and an OPS of .917, earning him NL Rookie of the Year honors. And at the beginning of the following season, he signed an eight-year, $100 million contract extension with Atlanta. Atlanta’s power-strengthening tradition of tying key members of the team to the first or second year began with Acuna Junior.
Ha-seong Kim is also eligible for an extended contract after this season or in the first half of next year. Even if he is treated with an annual average of more than 20 million dollars, his performance continues to be comparable.