Will Kim Ha-sung (29, San Diego Padres) and Lee Jung-hoo (26, San Francisco Giants) be able to share the same team again? The U.S. media is constantly pushing rumors that Kim Ha-sung will be transferred.
The San Francisco Chronicle claimed on the 7th (Korea Standard Time), “It would be ideal to bring San Diego’s Kim Ha-sung from the San Francisco shortstop position.” 메이저놀이터
As of Tuesday, San Francisco is ranking fourth in the National League West with 69 wins and 73 losses. It is 15.5 games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers, which ranks first, and is virtually over the moon to win the district championship, and 8.5 games ahead of the wild card qualification, making it difficult to advance to the postseason.
Ahead of the upcoming season, the San Francisco Giants are seeking the presidential election by recruiting Lee Jung-hoo, Matt Chapman, Jorge Soler, and Blake Snell. However, the team failed to stage a showdown due to the increasing number of injuries, and eventually ended up giving up the season by sending out Soler and others through trade.
San Francisco is struggling with its resources despite tough times, including second-year shortstop Tyler Fitzgerald. As of Tuesday, he has a batting average of 0.296 with 14 homers, 30 RBIs, 45 runs and 17 steals in 79 games. He has been gaining a chance since the second half of the year and has been establishing himself.
The media said that Fitzgerald plays shortstop and is in charge of the left side of the infield. Still, he insisted that Fitzgerald should practice playing on the right side of the infield. “If we bring in an FA, we can send Fitzgerald to second base, especially if we bring in San Diego’s Kim Ha-sung.”
Kim Ha-sung has played in 122 games this season with a batting average of 0.233, 11 homers, 22 steals, and an OPS of 0.700. He moved to second base last year after being pushed back by veteran Xander Bogaerts and returned to shortstop for the first time in a year, but he remained firmly in position by playing 1,046 ⅔ innings despite his prolonged absence.
Last year, he also stood out in batting performance. In the 2023 season, Kim Ha-sung played 152 games with a batting average of 0.260 with 17 home runs, 60 RBIs and 38 steals, with an OPS of 0.749. He became the first Korean to steal 30 bases in the Major League, and also challenged 20-20. The Gold Glove in the utility category of the National League was a bonus.
As a result, several teams sought to recruit through trade, but San Francisco was consistently nominated. Andrew Baggley, a San Francisco reporter for sports media The Athletic, said late last year, “It is difficult to predict now which position San Francisco needs the most a year later,” but added, “I expect there will be supporters who support Kim Ha-sung in San Francisco.” Even ahead of the trade deadline at the end of July, MLB.com insisted on the need to recruit second basemen and shortstop, but Kim Ha-sung is the perfect fit.
Kim Ha-sung shared a relationship with Lee Jung-hoo from 2017 to 2020 with the Nexen-Kium Heroes, and since then, he has maintained a close relationship. On top of that, San Francisco coach Bob Melvin used Kim Ha-sung as the main shortstop in San Diego in 2022, and he gave many opportunities last year to create Kim Ha-sung’s career high season. In many ways, Kim Ha-sung and San Diego are the perfect fit for each other.