Your back is working well? Kim Ha-sung, who returned healthy, made his first at-bat hit as soon as he returned to the IL, plus good defense to prevent a hit

Aug 02, 2025

 Your back is working well? Kim Ha-sung, who returned healthy, made his first at-bat hit as soon as he returned to the IL, plus good defense to prevent a hit
탬파베이 SNS캡쳐



"Awesome Kim" Kim Ha-sung (30) quickly recovered from an unexpected injury.

As soon as he was released from the injured list (IL), he returned to the starting lineup and proved his health by throwing a hit with a cheerful swing from his first at-bat. The injured back seems to have fully recovered. The strong and fast hip-turn, which began with the solid core muscles in the waist, became the driving force for good batting.

Kim Ha-sung was listed in the starting lineup as the second shortstop in the interleague home game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Florida on the morning of the 2nd (Korea time). It is the first return game in 11 days since the game against the Chicago White Sox on July 22.




I returned after completing the IL period of 10 days. Kim Ha-sung twisted his back muscle in the process of stealing second base against the White Sox on the 22nd. In the end, he was replaced during the game, leaving concerns about his physical condition. At first, it seemed to recover quickly, but the pain did not subside more easily than expected.

 Your back is working well? Kim Ha-sung, who returned healthy, made his first at-bat hit as soon as he returned to the IL, plus good defense to prevent a hit
탬파베이 SNS캡쳐
In the end, Tampa Bay officially announced on July 26 that it had placed Kim Ha-sung on the 10-day IL. Instead, the IL registration date was applied retroactively to the 23rd. If he completes the 10th, he will be able to return to the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on the 2nd. However, if the recovery of the injury was slow, the period could have been extended.

Fortunately, Kim Ha-sung overcame back pain with 10 days of rest and treatment. He immediately returned to the starting shortstop against the Dodgers on the 2nd. And from his first at-bat, he even had a good hit. You can see that the waist turned vigorously during the swing process. It's 100% cured.




Kim Ha-sung came to his first at-bat after one out in the bottom of the first inning. He faced Dodgers veteran left-hander Clayton Kershaw. I watched the four-seam strike outside the first pitch. The second and third balls are balls. Largely out of the zone and up.

 Your back is working well? Kim Ha-sung, who returned healthy, made his first at-bat hit as soon as he returned to the IL, plus good defense to prevent a hit
Photo provided by Tampa Bay Rays Club SNS
Kershaw threw his fourth slider to Kim Ha-sung's lower body. It's hard for right-handed hitters to hit well. It is Kershaw's lethal move that even if you hit it, you will get a hit. However, it did not reach the pitch of its heyday. The angle of falling was rather flat. Still, it was saved low.

It's a tricky ball. Bat speed requires hitting skills to hit. Kim Ha-sung has all these skills and physical abilities. Based on a fast and strong hip-turn, he pulled a low slider on his body. The 88.8-mile-speed hit passed by the Dodgers shortstop who attempted a sliding catch and flowed to left field. Kim Ha-sung took first base with a clean hit.




However, he failed to score due to the silence of the follow-up batting line. Kim Ha-sung also refrained from stealing second base. It seems to be because of concerns about the recurrence of injuries.

Kim Ha-sung, who showed a strong swing at the batter's box, showed an outstanding defense scene in which he blocked the opponent's hit.

 Your back is working well? Kim Ha-sung, who returned healthy, made his first at-bat hit as soon as he returned to the IL, plus good defense to prevent a hit
In the top of the third inning, when trailing 0-2, Dodgers leadoff hitter Mookie Betts rolled quickly to 3-period. It was a deep hit that was more skewed toward the third baseman. It was going to be a hit.

However, Kim Ha-sung quickly chased and caught the ball, turned around and threw strongly toward first base. By delivering the rotational force that began with healthy core muscles to your fingertips, you caught the ball strongly and increased the speed.

Kim Ha-sung's throw exactly entered the first baseman's meet, and he caught Betts, who sprinted by a hair's breadth. It was a good defense like the 2023 National League Gold Glove (utility) winner. With his good performance in the airlift at the beginning of the game, Kim Ha-sung fully proved his simplicity.



Reporter Lee Won-man wman@sportschosun.com



This article was translated by Naver AI translator.