When Kim made his debut in 2021, he struggled to adjust to the fastballs of MLB pitchers. His batting average barely broke the 2 percent mark.
In 2022, however, he seemed to have adjusted and raised his batting average by nearly five points.
This year, it should be even higher. That’s because his pace is better than last year.
In the first 57 games of last year’s season, 메이저놀이터 Kim posted an offensive slash line of 0.211 (batting average)/0.291 (on-base percentage)/0.337 (slugging percentage). His OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) was 0.628.
In 57 games to start the year, he had a slash line of .241/0.337/0.380. That’s an OPS of 0.716. His batting average, slugging percentage, and on-base percentage are all up. In particular, his OPS increased by nearly a full percentage point.
His defense has also become more reliable. Despite moving to second base, he has the best defensive WAR (wins above replacement) in MLB.
At this rate, he could make the All-Star team.
Meanwhile, four South Korean players have played in the MLB All-Star Game: Park Chan-ho, Kim Byung-hyun, Choo Shin-soo, and Ryu Hyun-jin.