‘No. 1 is my constitution’… Kim Hae-sung blasts his 11th shot of the season
Kim Ha-sung bats first and hits a home run in his first at-bat. The opposing pitcher’s face goes blank, and his batting average increases dramatically as he bats first.
Reporter Choi Jong-hyuk.
< San Diego 6:7 Philadelphia｜Major League >
From his first at-bat in the first inning, Kim Ha-seong’s bat was fierce.
He bent his left knee to scoop up a ball that fell well below the strike zone, and it went over the fence.
[Kim fires a “cannonball. A ball that falls well outside the strike zone and takes the batter’s timing off, and he turns it into a home run – feet down, hands back].
It’s his 11th home run of the season, and the 30th of his career in his third year in the big leagues.
He tied the franchise record for most home runs in a season right around the turnaround point, and at his current pace, he’s on pace to surpass 20.
Add to that his 17th stolen base, and he’s within striking distance of becoming the first Asian infielder to join the ’20-20 club’ of hitting well and running well.
Kim, who has been batting first since last month, is not only fulfilling the task of putting the table on the table for subsequent batters to score, but he’s also putting up some impressive numbers.
His batting average is better at No. 8 (0.308) and No. 6 (0.270), but his on-base percentage is significantly higher when batting first (0.481).
Today (17th), he followed up his first-inning home run with a two-run shot that hit the fence in the eighth inning, just short of a home run, and celebrated with a silly gesture.
San Diego, whose success in the batting order was largely due to Kim’s performance, lost in extra innings today due to a lack of depth on the mound.
(Video Design: Kim Chung-hyun / Video Graphics: Jang Hee-jung)
(* For copyright reasons, we do not provide the broadcast video)