“100 Million Dollars” Kim Ha-sung Becomes a Reality…Special FA evaluation + mention of the possibility of participating in the first team

Kim Ha-sung (29, San Diego Padres) was evaluated as one of the best FA to be released in the market after this season. As the possibility of the New York Mets, a first-class club, participating in the recruitment of Kim Ha-sung has been raised, the possibility of signing a $100 million contract (about 131.1 billion won), which was only worth talking about, is no longer a dream. The U.S. media outlet The Athletic introduced the best FA players to the New York Mets, who have failed to recruit FA players they want this winter, on the 9th (Korea time).

The New York Mets have repeatedly failed to recruit big players this winter despite massive funds. The loss of Shohei Ohtani (30) and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 26, both to the Los Angeles Dodgers was a major contributor. Notably, in the case of Yamamoto, billionaire owner Steve Cohen flew to Japan with New York Mets President David Stearns to have a meal with him, and was the first to offer a 10-year, 325 million dollar contract, but the deal failed. While he was so into Yamamoto, mid-sized FA pitchers such as Aaron Nola (31, Philadelphia Phillies) and Eduardo Rodriguez (31, Arizona Diamondbacks) also headed to other places. Eventually, he had to be satisfied with matching his head to necessary positions including Luis Serberino (30), Sean Mernaea (32), and outfielder Harrison Bader (30).

However, as the team has abundant funds, it is highly likely that it will continue to release large amounts of money in the FA market. The Athletic said, “By the end of the season, the Mets may be more aggressive in terms of their future direction. They aimed for Yamamoto, but showed restraint in other sales.” 안전한 파워볼사이트

Kim Ha-sung was named as a star-studded FA fielder that the Mets can aim for. Along with him, the players were all beautiful. There were many players that any baseball fan would know, ranging from MVP such as Jose Altuve (34, Houston Astros) and Paul Goldschmidt (37, St. Louis Cardinals), to Alex Bregman (30, Houston), two-time World Series champion, Pete Alonso (30, New York Mets), who won the 2019 National League Rookie of the Year award with 53 home runs, and Juan Soto (26, New York Yankees).

Notably, he is on par with Altuve in the same position. Since his debut with the Houston Astros in 2011, Altuve has posted a batting average of 0.307 with 209 homers, 747 RBIs, 1062 runs and 293 steals, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 0.834 while playing for only one team. He is an offensive second baseman who lacks the term “hot hitters” to the extent that he once hit 56 steals (2014) and 31 homers (2019) in a season in the third inning, and the sixth inning of the Silver Slugger. As he was not armed enough, he won the Gold Glove once despite his height of 168 centimeters (2017) and led Houston to two World Series championships.

On the other hand, Kim Ha-sung is still a defensive second baseman who excels in defense rather than offense. Entering the Major League through San Diego in 2021, Kim was given an opportunity in 2022 due to long-term absence due to wrist injury of Fernando Tatis Jr., 25, his flagship shortstop. He became one of the three finalists for the Gold Glove shortstop in the National League in his first year of hard-won full-time, and in his third year last year, he was a solid second baseman. While playing mainly as a second baseman, he also showed defensive performance above the league average in shortstop and third baseman, becoming the first Asian infielder and the first Korean to win a Gold Glove in the utility category.

However, there are high expectations in terms of offense as well. He hit 0.202 in 2021 and 0.251 in 2022, and posted a career high last year with a batting average of 0.260 in 152 games, 17 homers, 60 RBIs, 84 runs scored, 38 stolen bases, and an OPS of 0.749. With his outstanding defense and potential for development in offense, The Athletic finally claimed on the 2nd that he would need a nine-digit number (US$100 million) to renew his contract with Kim Ha-sung.

In addition to the fielders, there are many players who will win at least $100 million worth of FA contracts, including Max Pride (30, Atlanta Braves), Corbin Burns (30, Milwaukee Brewers), Jack Wheeler (34, Philadelphia Phillies), Walker Buehler (30, Los Angeles Dodgers), and Shane Bieber (29, Cleveland Indians).

If the Mets aim for Kim Ha-sung, chances are high that the team will use him as a second baseman or third baseman. Currently, the Mets consist of third baseman Brett Barty (24), shortstop Francisco Lindor (30), and second baseman Jeff McNeil (32)-1st baseman Alonso. Lindor signed a 10-year, 341 million-dollar contract, which will be tied up until 2031, and McNeil also signed a four-year, 50 million-dollar extension to play until at least 2026. Third baseman Barty, on the other hand, has not been able to play well as a key player in the winning team by posting a batting average of 0.212 in 108 games, nine homers and 34 RBIs, and an OPS of 0.598, as he played his first full-time season last year, which needs to be supplemented.