218.4 billion → 21.8 billion worst value plunge, and if Kim Ha-sung had become an FA a year ago, the expected destination would be noisy
Jan 16, 2025
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Dennis Lin, a reporter who specializes in statistics at The Athletic, said in an article on January 11 last year that `Kim Ha-sung will receive an annual salary of $8 million this year. He claimed that it will be effective only if contracts worth 130 million dollars to 150 million dollars (about 218.4 billion won) are guaranteed for seven years, including this year.
It is the time when rumors of Kim Ha-sung's trade were in full swing. The San Diego club seemed to have to trade or sign an extension contract ahead of the season, as it could not catch Kim Ha-sung, whose ransom would soar after the 2024 season anyway. However, reporter Lin recommended that in order to make Kim Ha-sung fall down at the time of 'then', he should sign an extension contract guaranteeing at least $130 million for seven years.
Kim Ha-sung hit a career high in 2023, the previous season. He played 152 games and recorded a batting average of 0.260 (140 hits in 538 at-bats), 17 homers, 60 RBIs, 84 runs, 38 steals, an OPS of 0.749, and a bWAR of 5.8. The attack has taken a leap forward. Above all, while watching the second baseman, he showed off his peak defense by taking over shortstop and third baseman, and won the Gold Glove in the utility category, drawing more attention.
His ransom, predicted by reporter Lin, was by no means unreasonable. In the preliminary FA rankings at that time, Kim Ha-sung was included in the top 10, and infielders other than the first baseman formed top 3 along with Alex Bregman and Willy Adames.
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But the season didn't go his way. He returned to his original position as shortstop, but no gold glove-grade defense came out. The batting has struggled since the beginning of the season. He couldn't get out of the low 20% batting average, and his slugging power decreased significantly. As the number of on-base hits was small, the number of stolen bases also decreased.
Still, I held out. The strikeout rate was significantly reduced by banking on the sharper pioneering plan. At the end of the first half, he marked a batting average of 0.226 and an OPS of 0.702. It seemed that he could try to turn around in the second half.
However, excessive sliding came out as he was motivated. He hit left in the third inning as a leadoff hitter against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on August 19. However, he hurt his right shoulder while sliding to first base in a hurry to check Colorado right-hander Bradley Blaylock's surprise check. I thought I would get better soon, but the pain did not go away, so I underwent a re-examination and was diagnosed with a rash. The season was officially closed, and he underwent sutures in Los Angeles on Oct. 11.
Immediately after the surgery, AJ Preller said of the timing of Kim Ha-sung's return, `May, June, maybe July next year, I may not be ready to play," he said, giving a dark prospect. 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 conditions and is still agonizing.
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SB Nation reporter Harrison Fruck dealt with Kim Ha-sung most interestingly, mentioning five FA infielders that Milwaukee can recruit on the 15th.
He marked bWAR 2.6 even though Kim Ha-sung, who ranked 14th in the 2023 NL MVP vote, played only 121 games in 2024. Kim Ha-sung, who has built a bWAR of 15.3 for four seasons with the Padres, has seen both third baseman, shortstop, and second baseman. He said he showed off his above-average defense capability by hitting 47 home runs in 540 games.
In the meantime, 'Kim Ha-sung will want a larger amount because he rejected the $8 million mutual option in 2025. If it's a solid one-year contract, I think 12 million to 15 million dollars (about 21.8 billion won) will be satisfactory. It remains to be seen whether the Brewers will make such a deal.
Spotrac, a site specializing in annual salary, suggests Kim Ha-sung's market value at $49 million for four years. In reality, however, reporter Frug predicts that a short-term contract for one to two years is likely. This is because Kim Ha-sung, who underwent shoulder surgery in October last year, has an unclear timing of his return, and it is unknown whether he will regain his skills in 2023 after returning from injury.
Under the current atmosphere, the contract may be made when the timing of return is outlined to some extent after the opening of spring training.
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
