He’s just one hit away from tying Shin-Soo Choo’s (41-SSG Rangers) record for the longest Major League Baseball (ML) streak. This is the story of Kim Ha-seong (28-San Diego Padres).
“Kim tied Shin-Soo Choo’s record for the longest hitting streak by a Korean-born major leaguer,” MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball, reported on Wednesday (June 12).
Earlier in the day, Kim went 2-for-5 with a double, a home run, an RBI and a run scored in the leadoff spot in the lineup for the Dodgers’ 2023 Major League Baseball (ML) opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field in Arizona, USA. In San Diego’s 10-5 win and escape from a four-game losing streak, Kim’s season batting average increased from 0.288 to 0.290 and his OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage) from 0.835 to 0.837.
In his first two at-bats, Kim struggled with a catcher’s popup and a grounder. In his third at-bat, however, he got his batting average up to 99 miles per hour (159.3 kilometers per hour) on a line drive to right field. His final two at-bats played to his strengths. With two outs in the top of the sixth inning, he lined a 94.9-mile-per-hour (152.7 km/h) four-seam fastball from reliever Luis Frias for a single to left field. Kim hasn’t missed a pitch this year, even if it’s a 95-mile-per-hour fastball.
He led off the ninth inning with a 7-5 San Diego lead and produced a line drive to left-center field, sprinting to second base despite his helmet coming off. He came home on Fernando Tatis Jr.’s RBI single to center field, changing the momentum of a tight game.
With his multi-hit game, Kim tied the Korean major league record for consecutive games with a hit. The previous record was held by Shin-Soo Choo, who had 16 consecutive games with multiple hits from July 3, 2013 against the San Francisco Giants to July 23, 2013 against the San Francisco Giants when he was with Cincinnati, a streak that neither Kang Jeong-ho nor Choi Ji-Man could match.
Also, with his ninth-inning double, Kim became the first player since Tyson Jr. in 2021 to have 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases in a season, according to MLB.com. “He’s the most determined player in San Diego,” he said, “and he’s on pace for the longest hitting streak of the season (through 12 games).”
The previous longest hitting streak this season was 25 games by Marcus Semien (Texas Rangers) from May 11 to June 7. Many hitters have since attempted the feat, but most have been cut short around the 20-game mark. The longest current hitting streak is currently held by Kim Ha-seong at 16 games.토스카지노
It will be interesting to see if Kim can make up for tying the Asian Major League record for consecutive games with multiple hits by breaking the record for consecutive games with a hit. He went 1-for-4 with a home run and three strikeouts against the Seattle Mariners on Sept. 9, ending his 16-game hitting streak and settling for a tie with Ichiro Suzuki in 2007.
The Asian major league record for consecutive games with multiple hits is held by Ichiro in 2009. Ichiro reached base in 27 consecutive games from May 7, 2009 against the Kansas City Royals to June 4, 2009 against the Baltimore Orioles.