Ha-Seong Kim is finally here

Ha-Seong Kim has finally started living up to the hype and his contract, and not a moment too soon for the San Diego Padres.

Since last offseason, when the San Diego Padres signed Ha-Seong Kim out of the KBO to a 4-year/$28 million deal (that could be a 5-year/$35 million deal), there has a been more than a little bit of chatter on whether Kim would be able to make the transition to the MLB level of competition.

His first season did not do a lot to quiet those concerns. Despite playing stellar defense at multiple positions, Kim finished the season with a slash of .202/.270/.352. Those are some “You’re damn right he plays Gold Glove defense, because he’d be off the team if he didn’t” numbers.

I wrote a month ago about the confidence that I had in Kim entering this season, and I’ve been frustrated by how many games he’s spent on the bench with C.J. Abrams getting starts against right-handed pitching. I believe the inconsistent at-bats led to his slow start to the season, but now I’d much rather dive into how he’s been doing lately and what it means going forward.