Kim Ha-sung (29), who spent four seasons in the Major League, has become a free agent for the first time. The prospect of a long-term contract for more than 100 million U.S. dollars has darkened rapidly due to the emergence of an unexpected negative factor called “shoulder injury.”
The evaluation of local media, which was only cold, is sending positive signals, referring to the realistic contract size as time goes by. The average annual amount, which had fallen to 10 million dollars (about 14 billion won), also rose to the level of qualifying offers that Kim Ha-sung did not receive from the San Diego Padres.
ESPN, a U.S. sports media outlet, ranked the top 50 major league FA players and predicted the size of the contract on the 6th (Korea time). The media put Kim Ha-sung in 25th place and referred to him as a “very interesting case.”
“Kim Ha-sung is an above-average defensive shortstop,” ESPN said. “He has shown above-average hitting and baserunning ability in the league for three consecutive years. It is unclear whether Kim Ha-sung, who underwent shoulder surgery, will play in the early 2025 season. Therefore, a one-year contract or a qualifying offer may be meaningless. There seems to be no possibility that a five-year, 100-million-dollar contract that was expected before the 2024 season will come out of the Stove League,” the ESPN said, estimating the size of Kim Ha-sung’s contract as an FA for two years at 42.1 million dollars. In other words, the “qualifying offer” is based on the average annual amount of 21.05 million dollars.
Before the season, or just a few months ago, before Kim Ha-sung was injured, the FA outlook was very bright. Kim Ha-sung, who was evaluated as a preliminary FA resource with more than $100 million in contracts ahead of this season, was highly evaluated in August, including being listed as Tier 3, which is likely to sign a contract worth between $100 million (1401 billion won) and $200 million (280.2 billion won) in the preliminary FA grade classified by the U.S. ESPN).
However, there was an “extra-large negative factor” called right shoulder surgery. Kim Ha-sung, who injured his shoulder while returning to the ground against the Colorado Rockies on August 19, ended the season without returning to the ground. It is unclear when Kim Ha-sung, who finished 121 games in 2024 with a batting average of 0.233 (94 hits in 403 times at bat), 11 homers, 47 RBIs, and 22 steals, will be able to return to the ground in the 2025 season after undergoing shoulder surgery.
The value fell significantly due to the occurrence of the variable of injury. On October 14, “Spotting News” predicted Kim Ha-sung’s contract to be $63 million for five years, about half of the pre-season evaluation, and on the 22nd, “Blitzer Report” predicted a shorter contract period and annual average of $49 million for four years (about 68.6 billion won). Jim Bowden, a former general manager of “The Athletic,” also expected a contract worth $10 million (about 13.8 billion won) per year, which is virtually another FA re-entry. 메이저놀이터
As the postseason is over and the stove league is in full swing in November, the evaluation of Kim Ha-sung is changing little by little. The “New York Times” on the 1st mentioned, “Considering the lack of shortstop in the transfer market this winter, healthy Kim Ha-sung could sign a huge contract worth an annual average of 30 million dollars (about 42 billion won) for six years.” Based on the total amount of six years, it is a huge contract worth 180 million dollars (about 252.2 billion won). However, the media presupposed that “if there is no injury.” If Kim Ha-sung had not been hurt, he would have hit a jackpot of more than 100 million dollars in total as previously evaluated.
Other media outlets still expect long-term contracts to be difficult, but better prospects continue in terms of annual average amounts. On the 4th, Tim Britton of “The Athletic” predicted Kim Ha-sung’s FA contract to be $36 million (about 50.4 billion won) for two years and $18 million (about 25.1 billion won) annually. Then, Kim Ha-sung’s ransom is estimated at around $20 million annually until ESPN’s annual average forecast of $21.05 million (about 29.5 billion won) on the 6th. Despite the bad news of the injury, the versatility of Kim Ha-sung’s offense and defense, which has been shown so far, seems to be working as a shortstop.
Scott Boras, the “super agent” Scott Boras, who Kim Ha-sung has newly joined hands amid the prospect of FA ransom for several months, has become important. Recently, Boras has often shown that if a long-term contract does not go well, it will increase the annual average amount and turn its strategy to a short-term contract that includes options. In the last stove league, Blake Snell ($62 million for two years) and Matt Chapman ($54 million for three years) signed short-term contracts to set opt-out conditions, while Jordan Montgomery signed a one-year ($25 million) contract at all. However, it took quite a long time for these contracts to be signed. Kim Ha-sung’s contract is also likely to be a long-term battle. What kind of FA contract can Boras, the “devil’s agent,” give Kim Ha-sung.
