바카라San Diego Padres manager Bob Melvin said Kim Ha-seong has one of the best defences in the major leagues.
He spoke to the local media after the Padres defeated the Los Angeles Angels at Petco Park on Friday.
San Diego won 8-5 behind a strong start from Joe Musgrove and big hits from Zander Bogaerts, Jake Cronenworth and Manny Machado.
Musgrove picked up his seventh win of the season (2-0) with a dazzling seven innings of three-hit, 11-strikeout ball, while Cronenworth and Bogart stretched the lead to 5-1 with back-to-back home runs in the sixth. Machado went 3-for-3 with a home run, one RBI and two runs scored.
We can’t forget to mention another honourable mention. Kim Ha-seong.
“I think he’s the best defender in the major leagues, and a lot of his numbers say that,” Melvin said after the game. It was a huge play to end the game. Not many players can play that kind of defence,” he said, giving him a thumbs-up.
With two outs in the top of the ninth inning and an 8-5 lead, Kim sprinted forward at full speed to catch Taylor Ward’s grounder as it bounced off the mound and fell in front of second base, then threw to first base to get the runner at the plate. Melvin was referring to a defensive play in the ninth inning.
Earlier in the inning, Kim showed his agility and quickness to handle a difficult hit in the top of the fourth inning when the score was 0-0. With two outs, second baseman Mike Moustakas hit a grounder to first baseman Jake Cronenwirth that hit off his mitt and rolled into left field. It appeared to be an infield single as Kim was moving towards first base on a 1-2 pitch.
However, Kim blocked the ball with his right hand and dropped it, then quickly picked it up and threw it accurately to first base, leaving Mustachus with plenty of time to make the catch. The play drew gasps from Melvin and the rest of the San Diego team, and Cronenweth and pitcher Joe Musgrove came into the dugout together to give the youngster the ultimate tribute.
MLB.com wrote: ‘The Padres don’t have an All-Star infielder in 2023. That’s odd, because they’ll say he’s an All-Star,” and “As we’ll see later, he’s worthy of it.
As of today, Kim leads both leagues with a Baseball-Reference Defensive WAR of 2.0. He also leads the NL with 11 Outs Above Average (OAA) according to FanGraphs.