Major League Baseball

2022 MLB Playoffs: Ha-seong Kim is Padres' defensive heartbeat, offensive dynamo

Published Oct. 21, 2022 9:00 a.m. ET

By Pedro Moura
FOX Sports MLB Writer

PHILADELPHIA — The San Diego Padres have signed some of the highest-profile free agents in recent memory. They have made many of the largest trades in the sport’s history.

One of their most important players, though, fits into neither category.

South Korean shortstop Ha-seong Kim, signed on New Year’s Eve 2020 to a relatively small $28 million contract, has been San Diego’s second-most-valuable player in 2022. Considering that he has capably replaced the injured and then suspended Fernando Tatís Jr. all season, it could be argued that WAR understates Kim’s value.

Of the Padres’ top 10 contributors this season, according to that metric, Kim is the only one who did not previously play for another major-league team. President of baseball operations A.J. Preller won the low-stakes bidding for Kim after he logged seven standout seasons in the KBO.

He was a good enough defender, the thought was, that he’d be worth the money no matter how much of his 30-homer power translated to the major leagues. Last season, his first in MLB, Kim's value came almost exclusively from that defense. But this season, he has replicated that defense and added above-average offense. The Padres have come to think of him as "defensively kind of our heartbeat," as manager Bob Melvin said Thursday, and, against lefties, their leadoff hitter in front of Juan Soto, one of those famed trade acquisitions.

Kim’s production has freed him to demonstrate the unusual energy he brings to baseball. Scouts say his effort is consistently better than that of his peers, as evidenced by his voyage from first base to home on a single during San Diego’s Game 2 victory in this NLCS. That effort sparked the Padres’ comeback from two runs down against Philadelphia.

Melvin has repeatedly used Kim as a benchmark for the rest of his players to aspire to reach. Nobody in the majors, Melvin argues, plays harder. Granted, there was one stretch this season when that might not have been true: September. Kim’s play, especially his defense, fell off. But that defense has returned to form during the Padres’ playoff run.

"To be honest, I was a little tired, a little fatigued in September, late in the season," Kim told FOX Sports. "But once the postseason started, I’ve been back to my normal self."

Kim has already surpassed his career high for games played, which he blamed for the blip in his play. He said he changed his diet, eating more, to better fuel him for more competition.

Kim spoke through his interpreter, Leo Bae. Together, the two men have been the life of the many champagne-fueled clubhouse parties the Padres have recently held. Players look to Bae to dance to the decade-old K-pop hit "Gangnam Style," and he delivers. The Padres reciprocate Kim’s enthusiasm.

"We love each other," he said. "Coming to the field brings me joy every night and day."

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Kim’s closest friend on the club is left fielder Jurickson Profar, whom he was randomly assigned to sit next to during his first spring training with San Diego.

"I'm from Curacao, and he's from Korea," Profar said. "Because it's far, you don't really have your family here all the time. So that's why I really love him, and I love what he does, I love what he brings. I think with this year under his belt, he's only going to get better."

Kim said the two men rely on the other to buoy them on bad days.

"Obviously, he took care of me since Day 1," Kim said. "Now, I can safely call him my older brother. We’re true brothers now. He’s my family. He definitely played a key role so I could play through 162 games and at a high level."

Kim turned 27 during the brief lull between the NLDS and NLCS. He has at least two more years under contract with the Padres. If he can improve once more, they could have an in-his-prime All-Star on their hands.

"Even though I’m playing better than last year, I’m still confident I have more room to improve," he said. "I’m pumped that, with this second-year experience, I can take another step up next year."

The question is where that step will occur. Kim has been elite enough at shortstop that it might make more sense to move Tatis than him. Both players prefer to play short, but Kim is by all accounts the superior defender, and we haven’t seen Tatis field the position since his shoulder surgery — and PED suspension.

But that’s a question for next year. On Friday at Citizens Bank Park, Kim will lead off against Phillies left-hander Ranger Suarez. For up to 12 more games this season, he will continue to be the Padres’ defensive heartbeat and occasional offensive dynamo.

Pedro Moura is the national baseball writer for FOX Sports. He previously covered the Dodgers for The Athletic, the Angels and Dodgers for the Orange County Register and L.A. Times, and his alma mater, USC, for ESPN Los Angeles. He is the author of "How to Beat a Broken Game." Follow him on Twitter @pedromoura.