Ha-seong Kim (Korean: 김하성; born October 17, 1995) is a South Korean professional baseball infielder for the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the San Diego Padres and Tampa Bay Rays, and in the KBO League for the Nexen Heroes.
Kim was drafted 41st overall by the Heroes in the 2014 KBO League Draft. He made his KBO debut with the Heroes in May 2014 and won the KBO League Golden Glove Award in 2018, 2019 and 2020. In December 2020, Kim signed with the Padres and made his MLB debut in 2021. In 2023, Kim became the first Korean-born player to win a Gold Glove Award. He has also played for the South Korea national team in international baseball tournaments.
Kim was born on October 17, 1995, in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, the youngest of three children.
Kim attended Yatap High School in Seongnam, Gyeonggi, and in 2013, led his high school to a runner-up finish in the national high school baseball tournament. In his final high school season, Kim hit for a .375 batting average with a .477 on base percentage and 20 stolen bases.
Nexen/Kiwoom Heroes (2014–2020)
On May 18, he came out as a substitute in Game 3 against the Lotte Giants at Sajik Baseball Stadium and doubled with his first hit and tripled with his second hit. On June 4, he scored his first home run against pitcher Lee Tae-yang in the top of the eighth inning in Game 2 of NC Dinos.
On July 3, Kang Jung-ho, who was out with back pain in Game 3 against the Lotte Giants at Mokdong Baseball Stadium, played as a pinch-runner. With the score tied at 9–9 in the top of the eighth inning and Heo Do-hwan's error made it to the third base with two outs, he advanced to catch Son's hit and throw the ball to prevent a run at an important moment. The commentators also praised him for his skillful catch.
He started as the ninth batter and shortstop in Game 2 against the Kia Tigers on July 5. He hit a two-run home run against Park Jun-pyo, which was a 3:3 off-balance home run and a meaningful one that met starting pitcher Andy Van Hekken's 11th win. Kim hit two home runs during his three years in high school, and he reportedly did so in 30 games.
On July 6, he also played as the eighth shortstop in Game 3 against the Kia Tigers. Kim's family visited the stadium on this day, and he quickly caught a hit on the chest of third baseman Yoon Seok-min in the top of the eighth inning and threw it out to first base. On Aug. 15, in Game 16 of the season against Doosan Bears, Seo Geon-chang played in the final defense of the ninth inning. Oh Jae-won's class ball was well cleared with a diving catch and showed his good defense to catch the final out count.
In a game against the Kia Tigers on Aug. 16, Kang started as the eighth batter and shortstop in place of Kang Jung-ho, who was designated as the designated hitter for physical fitness. He showed good performance in both offense and defense on the day, and the commentator kept mentioning the "Kim Ha-sung Project." At bat, he got on base 100 percent with one hit and three walks from four times at bat, and managed to steal base after a walk in the fourth inning, and managed to score a point leisurely despite Seo Geon-chang's outfield forward defense when he had a hit. In particular, his RBI single in the fifth inning completed his team's record of hitting all the starters for the season. He also showed good performance in defense by handling tricky balls without difficulty.
Since then, he has steadily gained experience in the first division with great expectations from the manager, and has met the backup expectations as much as Kang's backup shortstop. He also mentioned that Kang Jung-ho is one of the candidates to occupy the position of shortstop, which will be vacant from the 2015 season due to his entry into the Major League.
He played as the starting shortstop in the opening game against the Hanwha Eagles on March 28. He seemed to work out well with his first at-bat hit, but he dropped the ball in the fourth inning due to a bunt failure and a collision with third baseman Kim Min-sung when he defended. Since then, he has been unstable on the defense side, but he has been criticized for showing unexpectedly good performance in his second year of high school. In particular, Kim Ha-sung, who consistently hits in the Nexen Heroes' lineup at the beginning of the season, stood out.
On April 5, in Game 3 against the SK Wyverns, he hit a home run and began to catch up with the game, which was dragged 8:0. The game eventually lost 13–7, but he showed growth by batting .318 with a .400 on-base percentage, 0.545 with a slugging percentage, 0.945, and 7 hits in 22 at-bats with one homer, two RBIs, two runs and one stolen base.
After a 2–1 game against the Hanwha Eagles on April 13, he changed his jersey number from 0 to 7, the number he used in high school. Since then, he has been praised for his rapid growth and stable defense. On April 15, in the first game against the SK Wyverns at Munhak Baseball Stadium, he showed a good defense reminiscent of Kang Jung-ho. On April 19, in Game 3 against the Kia Tigers at Gwangju Baseball Stadium, he played four hits, including a back-to-back home run against Yoon Suk-min. When he showed good performance in offense and defense, especially in long balls, he was nicknamed "Peace Prince."
By April 30, he showed a tremendous record of batting average, slugging percentage, home run, RBI, and OPS among the main shortstop in the 10th team. The shortstop ops was 1.002, and he also ranked sixth in slugging percentage and fourth in war.
On May 1, he recorded one hit and one stolen base from four times at bat in Game 1 against the LG Twins at Jamsil Baseball Stadium. Against Henry Sosa, he also drew admiration from his fans by showing a unique bat control reminiscent of Kang Jung-ho, who has become a major leaguer.
In Game 3 against the Hanwha Eagles at Mokdong Baseball Stadium on June 4, he went 3 for 5 at-bats for the first time in a long time, with one RBI, two runs scored, and two walks, contributing to his team's victory. He was even interviewed by a trainer after the game. On June 6, he hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10th inning in Game 2 against the Doosan Bears at Mokdong Baseball Stadium. It was even more dramatic because he started with a 0:8 deficit and Kim Min-sung's two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning tied the score at 8:8. The extended game's 10th solo homer, also referred to it as Kim's first walk-off homer of his career. Individually, he showed his recovery from the slump by shooting home runs for the second straight day, and the team managed to trade places by beating Doosan, which had been in third place, to fourth place without a hitch. Kim Ha-sung was also still 19 years old, resulting in his sixth all-time teenage double-digit home run.
Because of how he performed this season, he was elected through both fan and team votes to be honored to participate in the KBO All-Star Game for the first time since his debut.