Kim Ha Seong Writes History

Illustration courtesy: Yeseong Park

​Kim Ha Seong’s rise to stardom is nothing short of a Cinderella story. When he signed with the San Diego Padres in December 2020, few expected him to have as much of an impact as he is having this season. He was initially a backup shortstop for Fernando Tatis Jr., who had been a consistent starter for the Padres. His stats did not look too promising before this season, when the Padres looked to replace Kim with another shortstop. Even though Kim showed his great potential when playing in the KBO, Korea’s baseball league, many doubted his ability to succeed in the American MLB.

This season, Kim put those doubters to rest, as he became one of the central pieces in the Padres’ playoff run. It all started when Fernando Tatis Jr. was suspended for 80 games following a failed performance-enhancing drug test. As his backup, Kim was handed the keys to the shortstop position and he promptly delivered. His performance has been meteoric. This year, Kim batted .254 on average, which is on par with the league batting average. What is more eye-catching than his batting average, however, is his impeccable fielding. He has been nearly perfect from the field, making only eight errors the entire season. This accounts to a fielding rate of 98.2 percent- a fielding rate of this caliber means that Kim made the correct play 98.2 percent of the time the baseball was hit his way.

All of this amazing performance has turned even his most fierce critics into his fans. The padres manager Bob Melvin said in an interview with ESPN, “Kim has performed admirably this season. Considering he was filling in for a player, what Kim has done is simply unbelievable. I would say that he is the heart and soul of our defense.”

Yesterday, the MLB announced that Kim was nominated for the National League Golden Glove Award for the shortstop position along with two other players: Dansby Swanson and Miguel Rojas. The Golden Globe Award is given to the best defensive player in each position. Although all three of these players have similar defensive statistics, many analysts are predicting Kim will win this award considering his significant improvement this season. If Kim ends up taking home the Golden Globe trophy, he will be the first player in MLB history to do so.

Many Korean batters have tried to leave their mark on the MLB stage before, but very few have made it to the extent that Kim has in this season alone. Kim has become not only an essential piece for the San Diego Padres, but also a national hero for Korean baseball.