Kim Hye-sung is likely to play in WCS, and Ohtani and a home run explosion aimed at fall baseball! LAD responsible for utilization value as loan-to-person defense
Sep 29, 2025
|
|
Kim Hye-sung started as the eighth second baseman against the Seattle Mariners, the last regular season game at T-Mobile Park on the 29th (Korea time), and played one hit, two RBIs and one run in four at-bats, including a home run.
The Dodgers, who won 6-1, ended the season with 93 wins and 69 losses. The Dodgers will invite the Cincinnati Reds to the best-of-three wild card series (WCS), which starts at Dodger Stadium on October 1st, to advance to the division series.
Kim Hye-sung, who has mainly played as a backup member since September, made a strong impression on manager Dave Roberts by launching a thrilling cannon after a long time.
|
At the ball count of 1B1S, Kim Hye-sung kicked a 93.2 mile fastball that flew into Seattle right-hander Bryce Miller's high third pitch to well over the right-center fence. He hit his third homer of the season with a shooting angle of 31 degrees, a batting speed of 101.6 miles and a flying distance of 409 feet.
It is the first time in 120 days that Kim Hye-sung hit a home run since his two-run shot to right-center in the bottom of the second inning against the New York Yankees on June 1,
Kim Hye-sung's home run eventually became the winning shot. The Dodgers kept the lead until the end with Freddie Freeman's two-run shot in the third inning and Ohtani's solo shot in the seventh inning. Kim Hye-sung later retired with a ground ball to the second base, a swing and miss strikeout, and a fly ball to the left field. In the bottom of the seventh inning, he moved his position to shortstop to finish the game.
As a result, Kim Hye-sung played 71 games in the major league's debut season and recorded a batting average of 0.280 (45 hits in 161 at-bats), three home runs, 17 RBIs, 19 points, seven walks, 52 strikeouts, 13 steals, a on-base percentage of 0.314, a slugging percentage of 0.385 and an OPS of 0.699.
In defense, he started 31 games as a second baseman, nine as a center fielder, and four as a shortstop, respectively. He marked a batting average of 0.381 (8 hits in 21 at-bats) against left-handers and 0.264 (37 hits in 140 at-bats) against right-handers, respectively.
However, he played erratically in the second half of the year and only posted a batting average of 0.143 (7 hits in 49 at-bats) and an OPS of 0.364 due to a month-long absence due to a shoulder injury.
|
Reporter Chen said, `If the main catcher Will Smith can play in the postseason, three of Ben Lotbet, Dalton Rushing, Michael Confoto, Elex Cole and Kim Hye-sung will be included'Kim Hye-sung has the value of using it as a pinch runner and logarithmic ratio. The backup catcher is more likely to be Lotbet than rushing, and if WCS reduces the number of pitchers to 12 and fielders to 14, he will take all three catchers. It is expected that either Cole or Confoto will be excluded, but if Smith is absent, both players have a possibility.
Smith suffered a microfracture in his right hand on the 11th and was listed as injured. Light batting is possible, but it is still difficult to make the throw with all power. No scenario was mentioned in which Kim Hye-sung could be excluded.
|
Clayton Kershaw, who announced his retirement, started the game against Seattle on the same day and pitched five ⅓ innings with four hits, one walk, seven strikeouts, and 11 wins this season, and decided to rest for the WCS. If they reach the Division Series, they will be included on the roster.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
