adminCoors Field is a hitter’s paradise and a pitcher’s graveyard. But for Ha-Sung Kim (28, San Diego Padres), it’s a bad match. Kim’s first home run at Coors Field, a 396-foot (120.7 meters) shot that would have been a home run at 11 other stadiums, was caught in front of the fence. However, the final run made up for it.
Kim went 1-for-3 with one walk, one run scored and one strikeout while starting at seventh and second base for the 2023 Major League Baseball World Series at Coors Field in Denver, Colorado, USA, on Nov. 11 (KST). His two-game hitting streak was snapped, dropping his season average from .246 to .242.
With the three-game win streak, San Diego improved to 31-33 and moved closer to a .500 record and within 1.5 games of the third-place San Francisco Giants in the National League West, who also lost on the same day.
Coors Field is known for producing the most long balls of all 30 major league ballparks, but Kim only has seven doubles there. His career numbers aren’t much better, with a .276 batting average, .397 on-base percentage, and .714 OPS. That’s because the outfield is so vast that even balls that could be home runs are often caught in front of the fence. That was the case today.
Facing Colorado starter Kyle Freeland in the second inning, Kim lined a ball into left field. Jurickson Profar, a close friend from his days in San Diego, caught it. The most disappointing at-bat came with one out in the fourth inning. Kim lined a 90-mile-per-hour sinker from Freeland that came in high, sending the ball over the plate at 97.1 mph (156.3 km/h). With a 33-degree launch angle, it sailed nearly 400 feet to the right-center field fence. It would have been a home run in 11 different pitches, according to Statcast, but it was just 120 centimeters short. It traveled 396 feet and landed in the glove of center fielder Brenton Doyle.
Luck was not on Kim’s side in the first half. In the bottom of the fifth inning with the score tied 1-1, Kim made a poor throw to third base. Alan Trejo’s grounder was caught and thrown home, but the throw was too high to prevent Ezequiel Tova from scoring from third base.
But what he lacked in defense and hitting, he made up for with his vision and quick feet. In the top of the sixth inning, Kim drew a walk against reliever Jake Byrd with the bases loaded and one out. Austin Nola followed with a walk to load the bases. When Fernando Tatis Jr. hit a line drive to right field, Kim, who was on second base, sprinted home to make it a 3-2 game. The San Diego dugout erupted in celebration as Kim slid around the outfield to avoid the catcher’s tag.
In his final at-bat in the bottom of the seventh, with runners on first and third, he struck out swinging on five Daniel Bard sliders, ending a three-game hitting streak. Neither team scored the next two runs, however, as San Diego held on for a 3-2 win and Kim scored the game-winning run.토토사이트
Second starter Drew Carlton earned the win with two scoreless innings of one-hit ball, striking out one and walking one, while closer Josh Hader pitched a scoreless ninth with two strikeouts to earn his 15th save of the season.
At the plate, Manny Machado went 3-for-5 with a home run and a run scored. But it was his defense that shined. In the bottom of the eighth inning with San Diego leading 3-2, Machado chased down Mike Moustakas’ foul ball to third base, never letting go of the ball and throwing it back to first base to prevent the runner from scoring. The gritty play was applauded not only by San Diego fans, but also by some home team Colorado fans.