The Atlanta Braves have cooled off a bit over the last couple of weeks, recently losing two straight series to the Chicago White Sox and New York Mets. The Braves are still in first place in the NL East by a wide margin, but the Philadelphia Phillies are slowly starting to make up some ground.
One culprit for the Braves’ struggles is Ha-Seong Kim, who was brought into the team last season and missed the opening chunk of this year due to injury.
Recently, Braves writer Mark Bowman of MLB.com broke down just how poorly Kim has been playing at the plate so far this year.
“Ha-Seong Kim is hitting .086 (5-for-58) with no XBHs and a 25% K rate through the first five innings of his 18th game. He’d become just the 17th Braves position player to hit below .100 through 18 games. Sandy Leon recently became the 16th. Most recent before this year: 2023 Marcell Ozuna .085 (5-for-59), 2007 Ryan Langherhans .053 (2-for-38), 1992 Lonnie Smith .094 (3-for-32),” he reported on X, formerly Twitter.
It’s certainly not a great list to be on for Kim, who was lauded for his versatility and experience when the Braves brought him in last season. Of course, there is still plenty of time for him to turn things around, as the 2026 MLB season has not yet reached its halfway point.
Meanwhile, the Braves currently sit at 46-26 on the year, good for first place in the NL East by seven games, although the Los Angeles Dodgers recently surpassed them for the most wins in the MLB with 47.
The Braves will hope to get back into gear with the second game of their doubleheader against the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday evening in Atlanta.
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