'218.4 billion → 21.8 billion' Worst plunge in value, if Kim Ha-sung had become an FA a year ago... The expected destination of 'round the U.S.' is noisy
'218.4 billion → 21.8 billion' Worst plunge in value, if Kim Ha-sung had become an FA a year ago... The expected destination of 'round the U.S.' is noisy
Blog Article
What a useless assumption. What if Kim Ha-sung became a free agent a year ago or achieved the same performance as he did in 2023 last year? The 100 million dollar contract would not have felt like a "dream" as it does now.스포츠토토
Dennis Lin, a reporter who specializes in statistics at The Athletic, said in an article on January 11 last year, "Kim Ha-sung will receive an annual salary of $8 million this year. It will be effective only if contracts worth 130 million to 150 million dollars (about 218.4 billion won) are guaranteed for seven years, including this year."
Rumors of Kim Ha-sung's trade were in full swing. The San Diego Padres seemed to have to trade or sign an extension contract ahead of the season, as they could not catch Kim Ha-sung, whose value would skyrocket after the 2024 season. However, reporter Lin recommended that Kim Ha-sung be signed an extension contract that guarantees at least 130 million U.S. dollars for seven years in order to make him collapse at the "then" point.
Kim Ha-sung recorded his career high in 2023, the previous season. He played 152 games and recorded a batting average of 0.260 (140 hits in 538 times at bat), 17 homers, 60 RBIs, 84 runs scored, 38 steals, OPS of 0.749, and bWAR of 5.8. His offense has improved dramatically. More than anything else, he garnered even more attention as he mainly watched second basemen play shortstop and third basemen, showing off his maximum defense capability, and won the Gold Glove in the utility category.
His ransom, which reporter Lin predicted, was by no means unreasonable. At that time, Kim Ha-sung was included in the "top 10" in the preliminary FA rankings, and he formed the "top 3" along with Alex Bregman and Willy Adames as infielders except for the first baseman.
However, Kim spent another year with the San Diego Padres without being traded. As it was the last season of his four-year contract, he was clearly motivated and confident. Mutual options in 2025 were meaningless anyway.
The season, however, did not go as planned. He returned to his original position as shortstop, but failed to display a Gold Glove-class defense. The hitting spree began at the beginning of the season. He was still in the early 20s of the batting average, and his slugging ability significantly decreased. As he had few on-base hits, his attempts to steal also declined.
Still, he held on. He significantly reduced the strikeout rate by banking on his pioneering eye that got sharper. He displayed a batting average of 0.226 and an OPS of 0.702 at the end of the first half. He seemed to be able to seek a turnaround in the second half.
However, due to his strong motivation, he made excessive sliding. In a game against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on Aug. 19, he hit a left-handed hit as the leadoff hitter in the third inning. However, he hurt his right shoulder while sliding to the first base in a hurry to check Colorado right-hander Bradley Blaylock. He thought he would get better soon, but as the pain did not go away, he underwent a re-examination and was diagnosed with a rash. He finished the season officially and underwent a suture surgery in Los Angeles on Oct. 11.
Immediately after the surgery, AJ Preller, the general manager, gave a dark outlook on the timing of Kim Ha-sung's return, saying, "I may not be ready to play until May, June, maybe July next year." It was a decisive comment that Kim Ha-sung's value fell. He went to the FA market, but he has not been offered any special conditions and is still agonizing over it.
That doesn't mean there's no market demand. Regarding Kim Ha-sung, Atlanta Braves, Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox, and Milwaukee Brewers are still mentioned.
SB Nation reporter Harrison Fruck dealt with Kim Ha-sung most interestingly, mentioning five FA infielders that Milwaukee can recruit on the 15th.
"Kim Ha-sung, who ranked 14th in the 2023 NL MVP vote, marked bWAR 2.6 even though he played in only 121 games in 2024. Kim Ha-sung, who has built a bWAR of 15.3 for four seasons in the Padres, has seen many third baseman, shortstop, and second baseman. He showed off his above-average defense capability, knowing that he would float the ball to the point where he hit 47 home runs in 540 games in total."
"Kim Ha-sung will want a bigger amount because he rejected the $8 million mutual option in 2025. If it is a solid one-year contract, I think 12 million to 15 million dollars will be satisfactory. It remains to be seen whether the Brewers will make such a deal."
Spotrac, a site specializing in annual salary, suggests the market value of Kim Ha-sung at $49 million for four years. However, reporter Frack predicts that a short-term contract for one to two years is likely to be made in reality. This is because the timing of Kim Ha-sung's return from shoulder surgery in October last year is unclear, and it is unclear whether he will regain his skills in 2023 after returning from injury.