The Major League Baseball (MLB) regular season came to a close on Wednesday when the Miami Marlins-New York Mets suspension game was canceled because it had no bearing on postseason play .Ryu Hyun-jin (36, Toronto Blue Jays), whose team made the postseason, still has fall baseball to play, while Kim Ha-seong (27), Choi Ji-won (32, San Diego Padres), and Bae Ji-hwan (24, Pittsburgh Pirates) are done for the season. Of the three, Kim had the second-most successful season of any Korean slugger, behind only Choo Shin-soo (41-SSG Rangers).Despite a late-season dip in form, Kim batted .260 (140-for-538) with 17 home runs, 60 RBI, 84 runs scored, 38 stolen bases, and a .749 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage).His defense was still among the best in the league, and he showed flashes of brilliance at the plate, giving us plenty to look forward to next season .At his current pace, Kim is the third favorite to win the National League Most Valuable Player (MVP) award .While he won’t actually win the award, he will be the first Korean to receive votes since Shin-Soo Choo, who finished 14th and 12th in 2010 and 2013, respectively, and Ryu Hyun-jin, who finished 19th in 2019.He will also be looking to win the Gold Glove, which is awarded to the best defender, as well as the second baseman or utility player category. Kim, who began his big league career with San Diego in 2021, will be under contract for four years next year .If he maintains his hitting production and defense next year, he could be in line for a big contract .In the U.S., it is expected that San Diego will pursue an extension with Kim in earnest next season .In this atmosphere, there is talk that Kim’s price tag could be even higher. Xander Bogaerts, who played shortstop for the Dodgers this season, told the San Diego Tribune on Feb. 2, “I don’t think I’m going to stick with shortstop next year,” he said. With Boharz’s preferred position being second base, it’s likely that Kim will return to shortstop .As Sports Illustrated notes, “Kim established himself as a key cog in the team’s offense this year. If Bocharz does move, it shouldn’t be a problem because of his versatility.” After narrowly missing out on joining the 20-20 club this year with 17 home runs and 38 stolen bases, Kim’s price tag will skyrocket if he puts up numbers at 카지노사이트 shortstop next year.