This time, it is the Seattle Mariners again. Seattle, where second base is Muju Communist Party, was cited as the new destination for Kim Ha-sung (30).

U.S. media Clutch Point introduced Seattle's four free agents on the 13th (Korea Standard Time), the first of which mentioned Kim Ha-sung's name.토토사이트

Seattle, the American League West team, ranked second with 85 wins and 77 losses last year, and fell to fourth place in the wild card competition, failing to advance to the fall baseball league. "We need to improve in order to play in the playoffs again," the media said. "We need an infielder to fill the lineup. We are looking for a new team with Jorge Polanco, and as Ty France moved out as the transfer candidate, there was a vacancy. Willy Adames and Christian Walker also missed out, but Seattle still has infielders that it can recruit at a low cost."

One of the most important positions is to play second base. Seattle had filled its gap by bringing in Polanco last year, but had poor batting average of 0.213 and on-base plus slugging percentage of 0.651, and gave up the option of 12 million U.S. dollars after the end of the season.

Cole Young, the team's top prospect, is still not enough to take over as the main second baseman. "Kim Ha-sung, who had a good season in San Diego, needs a new home," the media said. "Seattle has a shortstop named J.P. Crawford, but Kim Ha-sung can also play as a second baseman or third baseman."

There were numerous articles about the need for Kim Ha-sung in Seattle earlier, but the common opinion was that Kim Ha-sung is a resource that can upgrade wherever he goes in the infield, not only to second base but also to shortstop where Crawford is staying.

"Kim Ha-sung has been consistently hitting well in San Diego, but it was not a very good hit above average," the media said. "One of the problems with Seattle's offense is that the home stadium is very disadvantageous to batters. Kim Ha-sung is a player with a solid defense and a solid batting record, and he will be more advantageous than other infielders."

It is also the idea of all the teams that want Kim Ha-sung. However, having been put on the operating table after injuring his shoulder in August last year became a negative factor. He could miss a significant portion of the first half of this season, and more importantly, there are doubts over whether he will be able to display the same defense and hitting as before. This is a critical reason why he is being underestimated in the market.

Nevertheless, this seems to be a positive factor for Seattle. This is because the cheaper ransom has made it easier to recruit Kim Ha-sung. Earlier, The Athletic expected Kim Ha-sung's ransom to be around $36 million (53 billion won) for two years, but the media said, "This is a very low amount for Seattle, where many contracts expire over the next two years," adding, "It is important to strengthen the infield and lineup this season, so a relatively high average salary is not a big problem."

"Kim Ha-sung is not a player who can lead the team to victory at once, but he can be an important piece to increase the team's competitiveness," he added.

Kim Ha-sung's future remains uncertain. Newsweek on Wednesday chose the Atlanta Braves as his destination. "San Diego's star infielder will sign a 60 million-dollar contract with a desperate National League club," the media said. "Kim Ha-sung is considered one of the most interesting free agents throughout the offseason. He is one of the best infielders in the league with tremendous talent, but he is recovering from shoulder surgery. Nevertheless, as the market's infielders are too thin, Kim Ha-sung can still sign a decent contract."

The Boston Red Sox have also emerged as a new candidate for the New York Yankees, who are showing keen interest in Kim Ha-sung. The U.S. media Sports Illustrated said on Sunday that Boston needs defenders. It is expected that Trevor Story will take the main shortstop position. However, since signing with Boston (since March 2022), Story has missed more than two-thirds of games. Von Grissom and Christian Campbell are expected to compete for the second baseman position. David Hamilton is playing as a backup center infielder, adding that Boston may or may not need another infielder. "The time to recruit resources in the free agent market is passing by quickly," he said. "In the meantime, it is expected that Gold Glover (Kim Ha-sung), who played for San Diego, will be recruited."