Controversy over personality Kim Ha-sung, who beat the FA pitcher the most, exploded for the first time since moving to ATL, with three hits and four on base

Sep 15, 2025

Controversy over personality Kim Ha-sung, who beat the FA pitcher the most, exploded for the first time since moving to ATL, with three hits and four on base
Atlanta Braves Kim Ha-sung is welcomed by Nacho Alvarez Jr. after scoring in the bottom of the second inning against the Houston Astros at Truist Park on the 15th (Korea time). ImagesYonhap News



Controversy over personality Kim Ha-sung, who beat the FA pitcher the most, exploded for the first time since moving to ATL, with three hits and four on base
Houston Astros Framber Valdez is considered the biggest pitcher in the FA market this year. AP Yonhap News


Atlanta Braves Kim Ha-sung eventually exploded.

Kim Ha-sung started as the fifth shortstop in the final game of the three consecutive home games against the Houston Astros at Truist Park on the 15th (Korea time) and led the team to an 8-3 victory by swinging three hits, one RBI, one walk, and one run from four times at bat.




It is the first time this season that Kim Ha-sung has played a three-hit game, and it has been about a year and two months since the game against the Arizona Diamondbacks on July 7 last year when he was with the San Diego Padres. As a result, Kim Ha-sung recorded a season batting average of 0.238 (29 hits in 122 times at bat), three home runs, 11 RBIs, eight runs, 11 walks, 29 strikeouts, 6 steals, and an OPS of 0.645. Since moving to Atlanta, he has a batting average of 0.289 (11 hits in 38 at-bats), one home run, six RBIs, three runs scored, and an OPS of 0.717.

Controversy over personality Kim Ha-sung, who beat the FA pitcher the most, exploded for the first time since moving to ATL, with three hits and four on base
Atlanta Braves Kim Ha-sung hits a right-handed hit in the bottom of the third inning against the Houston Astros at Truist Park on the 15th (Korea time). ImagesYonhap News
Kim Ha-sung, who entered as the leadoff hitter in the bottom of the second inning at 1-1, hit an infield hit and homered on a follow-up hit. He sprinted and produced a hit while flowing through the first base foul line, which hit Houston left-hander Framber Valdez's curve. Valdez tried to catch it in a hurry but missed it again and couldn't even throw it to first base

Kim Ha-sung, who advanced to second base with a walk by Marcel Osuna and third with a center field fly by Michael Harris II, homered and scored a 2-1 lead when Sandy Leon grounded out to second base. However, Atlanta failed to score additional points with one out and runners on first and second.




Kim Ha-sung also hit a hit in the third inning with two outs and a runner on first base when the 2-1 lead continued. At the ball count of 1B2S, Valdez's 4th pitch outside, he lightly pushed a 96.1 mile sinker to make a hit in front of right field with a line drive, connecting the chance to first and second bases with two outs. However, it was not more advanced because the follow-up hit did not explode.

Kim Ha-sung's bat also exploded in the third at-bat. Atlanta took a 4-2 lead again with Ajie Albies' two-run timely hit after Jurickson Profar, Matt Olson and Ronald Acuña Jr. walked back-to-back to get the bases loaded with no outs.

Kim Ha-sung then hit a 79.1-mile curve that fell outside Valdez's fourth pitch on the two-strike, sending a line-drive ball flying at 97.1 miles to center field, bringing third baseman Acuña Jr. home.




In the end, Valdez couldn't stand it anymore and was replaced. It collapsed with Kim Ha-sung's one shot. However, Atlanta failed to score additional points with no outs and runners on first and second.

In the sixth inning with a 6-3 lead, Kim Ha-sung was out with a fly to center field with two outs and a runner on second base. And in the last at-bat of the eighth inning, when the game was 8-3, he completed the fourth base game by getting a walk.

Controversy over personality Kim Ha-sung, who beat the FA pitcher the most, exploded for the first time since moving to ATL, with three hits and four on base
Atlanta Braves Kim Ha-sung scored in the second inning against the Houston Astros at Truist Park on the 15th (Korea time) and is giving high fives with his teammates. AP Yonhap News
Controversy over personality Kim Ha-sung, who beat the FA pitcher the most, exploded for the first time since moving to ATL, with three hits and four on base
Kim Ha-sung is defending Yiner Diaz's ground ball in the top of the sixth inning. ImagesYonhap News
Valdez, who took away three hits intensively on the day, is considered the biggest fish for pitchers in the FA market this season. He has been active in a full-time rotation since 2020 and has an ERA of less than 3 points in double-digit wins for five consecutive seasons from 2021 to this year. In the 2022 World Series, he won two games and posted a 1.46 ERA alone.

This season, he has started 28 games and won 12 games until the previous day, playing as a one-two punch with Hunter Brown in Houston.

He is 31 years old this year, and even if it is difficult to sign a contract for more than eight years, it is expected that an average of more than 30 million dollars can be signed annually. New York Post columnist John Heyman predicted that six teams, including the Boston Red Sox, San Francisco Giants, Baltimore Orioles, Detroit Tigers, and San Diego Padres, will jump into the "Valdez scramble".

After hitting a grand slam against the New York Yankees on the 3rd, he ignored catcher Cesar Salazar's signature and hit him in the chest, which is controversial, but this selfish tendency to act according to mood does not work much in the FA market.

However, Valdez lost the game by giving up six hits and four walks during four innings, allowing five runs. He marked 12-10 with a 3.59 ERA in the season.

Atlanta snapped a four-game losing streak and marked 66-83. Houston lost the AL West lead to the Seattle Mariners with an 81-69 record.





This article was translated by Naver AI translator.