Padres News: Bob Melvin Has High Praise for Ha Seong Kim
Despite not getting as much national fanfare as his other teammates in San Diego's lineup, Padres skipper Bob Melvin is giving credit where it's due for one of the best players on his roster.
Infielder Ha-Seong Kim may not have garnered an All-Star nod this year for his stellar 2023 season, but the Friars manager wanted to shout him out for his efforts in an otherwise disappointing team campaign.
“From defense to offense to baserunning, everything he does would suggest this is the start of something really good, and [he’s] a guy that I consider is on the verge of being an All-Star,” Melvin said of Kim. “In the years to come, I expect him to be.”
A five-tool player in every sense of the word, Kim may not be as hot as he was in early July when he was pacing the NL in WAR, but the Korean star has blossomed into an important piece of San Diego's future in 2023.
Hitting for more power than he ever has with 17 home runs, increasing his batting average by 20 points, stealing over 30 bags and playing Gold Glove caliber defense across the infield, Kim's value to his team in terms of WAR is over 6.0, good for fourth in the National League.
Trailing MVP candidates from both the Atlanta Braves and LA Dodgers, the two titans of the NL, Kim's value is absolutely nothing to ignore this season.
Though he won't win the award due to the aforementioned candidates elsewhere in the league, one could argue that Kim has been the best Padres player this season.
On track to receive some down ballot NL MVP consideration to end the year, Kim's finally arrived to the big league stage in a big way.
