Can the Korean Major Leaguer, which collapsed this year, rebound next year? Kim Ha-sung, as expected, even the Gold Glove candidate is eliminated

Oct 16, 2025

Can the Korean Major Leaguer, which collapsed this year, rebound next year? Kim Ha-sung, as expected, even the Gold Glove candidate is eliminated



The year 2025 for Korean major leaguers has ended up being 'Big Bang Season'. None of the players who played on the major league stage, including Lee Jung-hoo of the San Francisco Giants, Kim Ha-sung of the Atlanta Braves, and Kim Hye-sung of the Los Angeles Dodgers, made it to the Gold Glove final.

The Major League Secretariat announced a total of 60 Gold Glove candidates for 10 defensive categories (pitchers, catchers, first baseman, second baseman, third baseman, shortstop, left fielder, center fielder, right fielder, and utility) in the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) on the 16th (Korea time). Each league has three players in each field.

However, none of them, including Kim Ha-sung, who won the Gold Glove in the National League Utility category during the 2023 San Diego Padres, Lee Jung-hoo and Kim Hye-sung, made it to the top three in defense.




This is the result that was expected to some extent. Lee Jung-hoo, who played in 150 games, the most among Korean major leaguers, with a batting average of 0.266 (149 hits in 560 at-bats) and an OPS of 0.734 for his personal career, did not receive good reviews in center field throughout this season. Lee Jung-hoo's Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) this season was -18, and Outs Above Average (OAA) was -5. In short, it was in the bottom half of the major league center field.

Can the Korean Major Leaguer, which collapsed this year, rebound next year? Kim Ha-sung, as expected, even the Gold Glove candidate is eliminated
Kim Ha-sung, who returned from a shoulder surgery injury last year, or Kim Hye-sung, who challenged the major league stage for the first time this year, left a performance that could not even compete in the gold glove category at all. Kim Ha-sung returned from his team's Tampa Bay Rays in July, but failed to show exceptional performance in defense as he suffered a batting slump as injuries continued to repeat.

Kim Hye-sung, who played as a utility player for the Los Angeles Dodgers, was also not enough to surpass other competitors. Miguel Rojas, who played as a utility player with Kim Hye-sung at the Los Angeles Dodgers, entered the NL utility category as a candidate.




Can the Korean Major Leaguer, which collapsed this year, rebound next year? Kim Ha-sung, as expected, even the Gold Glove candidate is eliminated
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Meanwhile, the Chicago Cubs produced the most Gold Glove candidates. The Cubs fielded a total of six Gold Glove candidates (catcher, second baseman, third baseman, left fielder, center fielder, and pitcher). Among them, Cubs left fielder Ian Hep is trying to win the NL left fielder Gold Glove for the fourth consecutive time.

The Toronto Blue Jays also have six nominations, but have five players. Ernie Clement was nominated for AL third baseman and utility at the same time. Toronto second baseman Andres Jimenez and Cleveland left fielder Steven Kwan will also try to win the AL Gold Glove for the fourth consecutive time.

For the candidates, the final Gold Glove winner will be selected by adding up the votes of each team's coaches and the scores of defensive statistics (SDI) developed by the American Baseball Research Association (SABR). The announcement is on November 3.








This article was translated by Naver AI translator.