Ha-seong Kim (28, San Diego) was selected as a replacement to fill the vacancy of Manny Machado (31), a close friend. Both at bat and on defense, Machado performed an unsurpassed performance.
Kim Ha-seong started as the second batter and third baseman in the 2023 American Professional Baseball Major League (MLB) home game against the Boston Red Sox held at Petco Park in San Diego, California on the 20th (Korean time) and recorded 1 hit and 1 strikeout in 4 at-bats. .
Kim Ha-seong, who came out as the second batter for the first time this season, hit two consecutive games and maintained a batting average of 0.235 (32 hits in 136 at-bats) for the season. His OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) is 0.691.
Special order given to Kim Ha-seong: fill the vacancy of the ‘injured’ wagon!Prior to the game, sad news was delivered to San Diego. Third baseman Machado was placed on the injured list (IL) due to a fracture of the bones in his left hand. Machado, who rarely gets injured due to thorough self-management, has been registered with IL for the first time in eight years.
San Diego spent $300 million (398.5 billion won) to retain Machado after the 2018 season. His contract was for 10 years. As much as that, Machado is evaluated as a proven player who plays a stable role based on his healthy body, so his vacancy feels more painful.
Out of the 44 games San Diego played this season before this day, Machado started in 38 games and Kim Ha-seong in 6 games as a third baseman. Other than the two, no one was selected as a third baseman as a starter. Of course, Ha-seong Kim came out as the third baseman that day.
Machado is an outstanding hitter with a career batting average of 0.280, OPS of 0.828, 288 homers and 872 RBIs. However, he could not show greater productivity than Ha-seong Kim if he limited this season. His batting average was 0.231, lower than Ha-seong Kim, and his home runs were 5, only one more than Ha-seong Kim, and his RBIs (19) were not much different from Ha-seong Kim (15). OPS (0.654) was lower than Ha-seong Kim.
Even if it’s not perfect… ‘2023 Machado’ didn’t come to mindIn the bottom of the first inning, with no runners out, Kim Ha-seong lightly pushed Boston starter James Paxton’s outside cut fastball to create a right-handed hit.
In the bottom of the 3rd inning, he struck out on a swing, and in the bottom of the 5th he was withdrawn with a fly ball to center field. Episode 8 was disappointing. He hit a ball deep toward the center wall, but was caught by the center fielder.
A sense of stability shined in the defense, which took place as third baseman due to Machado’s injury. Particularly impressive was the scene in the top of the 7th inning when he caught a ball from Korean-American Rob Lefsnyder on first base and threw it to second base, resulting in a double stroke.
The match that day was also a ‘mini Korea-Japan match’. Masataka Yoshida, who started as Boston’s designated hitter No. 5, had a left-handed hit in the top of the second inning to lead 1-0. From the top of the third inning, he hit three consecutive ground balls and retired. He was 1 hit in 4 at-bats and could not decide the winner in the face-to-face confrontation with Kim Ha-seong. Season performance is excellent. Yoshida, who entered the big leagues this season, is making a soft landing with a batting average of 0.299, 6 homers, 28 RBIs and an OPS of 0.871.
The match between Yoshida and Japan was a draw, but… the other line was silent, tied to Paxton.San Diego starter Blake Snell allowed 5 runs only in the 3rd inning and 6 runs in 4 innings, becoming a losing pitcher. Other than Fernando Tatis Jr., who hit a solo home run in the other lineup, Paxton (6 innings, 1 run) had a good pitch and was hardly able to use his strength. There were only 5 hits that day.
In Boston, fourth hitter Raphael Devers hit a home run in consecutive hits with a solo shot in the second inning and a sushi run shot in the third, leading the team to victory with four RBIs.안전놀이터
San Diego fell into a three-game losing streak and stayed in fourth place in the National League (NL) Western Division with a season record of 20 wins and 25 losses. The ride with the leading LA Dodgers is a whopping 8.5 games. On the other hand, Boston, which has three consecutive victories, is 4th in the Eastern Division of the American League (AL), along with San Diego, even after recording 25 wins and 20 losses. Tampa Bay, the league leader, is showing an overwhelming pace with 33 wins and 13 losses and an odds rate of 0.717.