SEOUL, The San Diego Padres’ South Korean shortstop Kim Ha-seong collected two hits in his major league postseason debut, while countryman Choi Ji-man went hitless in a loss for the Tampa Bay Rays.
Kim, batting seventh, went 2-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in the Padres’ 7-1 victory over the New York Mets in the first game of the National League Wild Card Series at Citi Field in New York on Friday (local time).
Kim became the fourth South Korean player to record a hit in a major league postseason game, joining Choo Shin-soo, Ryu Hyun-jin and Choi.
After striking out against Max Scherzer in the second inning, Kim led off the fifth with a single, and the Padres went on to put up a four-spot in that frame.
Kim drew a walk in the sixth but was caught stealing second. He lined a double to left field in the ninth, before getting caught in a rundown later in the inning.
Choi batted fifth and played first base against the Cleveland Guardians to open their American League Wild Card Series but went 0-for-2 with a walk in Tampa Bay’s 2-1 loss. The Rays had just three hits.
All Wild Card Series are best-of-three, with the higher-seeded teams hosting every game. The Padres will look to finish off the Mets starting at 7:37 p.m. Saturday back in New York, while the Rays will try to stay alive in Game 2, beginning at 12:07 p.m. Saturday in Cleveland.
The winner of the Padres-Mets series will go on to meet the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Division Series. Over in the AL Division Series, the New York Yankees await the winner of the Rays-Guardians showdown.
Source: Yonhap News Agency