He calmly played even in the unfavorable ball count and finally scored a wedge RBI. Kim Ha-sung (29, San Diego Padres) felt satisfied even without a hit.
The San Diego Union-Tribune introduced an interview with Kim Ha-sung on the 6th (Korea Standard Time), saying, “Kim Ha-sung ended the game without a hit yesterday (5th), but he showed his productive clutch ability.”
Kim Ha-sung played as the team’s seventh batter and shortstop in the 2024 Major League Interleague away game against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, the previous day, and had no hits and an RBI in three at-bats. He hit three strong balls with a batting speed of 95 miles (about 152.9 kilometers) or higher, but he was caught in a good rain or sent it to the opponent’s fielder.
From his first at-bat in the second inning, Kim Ha-sung hit a home run-like hit, but was caught by the opponent’s left fielder Wyatt Langford’s jump catch. According to Statcast, it was a hit that would be a home run in 27 of the 30 stadiums in the Major League. He then hit a changeup in the fifth inning to make a fast hit of 103.8 miles per hour (about 167 kilometers), but this time he went straight to the third baseman. 노래방알바
Still, Kim scored an RBI single that sealed his team’s victory amid a calm battle. San Diego, which was leading 2-1, advanced to third base on a wild pitch after leadoff hitter Donovan Solano doubled to Scherzer in the top of the seventh inning. Texas replaced the pitcher with right-hander Jose Ureña in the batter’s box.
After watching the first two balls pass through the strike zone, Kim Ha-sung cut his body sinker on the third pitch. The ball count was 0-2 at a disadvantage. However, after picking up two sliders that flowed out, he put up with the sinker on the outside of the six pitches, and finally made a full count.
Here, Kim Ha-sung hit the slider technically. The well-hit ball flew in front of left fielder Langford again, but there was no problem for third baseman Solano to hit home. It was a decisive RBI to break the ice lead situation by one point.
In response, Kim Ha-sung himself expressed satisfaction. “I think I’ve been doing pretty well,” he said in an interview after the game. “So I was confident that I wouldn’t get struck out.” He added, “It was the background of this confidence that I was able to score even though the ball count was 0-2.
The media highly evaluated Kim Ha-sung’s batting ability, saying, “No player in the big league has a contact ratio (84.9%) as high as Kim Ha-sung, but has less bat on the ball outside the strike zone (18.2%).”
Kim has a batting average of 0.225 (67 hits in 298 times at bat), 10 homers, 39 RBIs and 46 runs, 17 steals, and an on-base percentage of 0.331 slugging percentage of 0.379 and an OPS of 0.710 in 89 games including the game on the day. “I think we have improved in that we do not swing and miss due to bad balls. That’s why I think positively,” he said in a recent interview.
