After two days of playing exhibition games with the San Diego Padres on his home soil, South Korean shortstop Kim Ha-seong said Wednesday he couldn’t wait to get the regular season under way.

The Padres will face the Los Angeles Dodgers later Wednesday at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul for the first game of the historic Seoul Series. This will be the very first Major League Baseball (MLB) regular season game in South Korea. Kim will start at shortstop and bat fifth.

“I think it’s going to be so much fun playing in Korea,” Kim told Yonhap News Agency in a conversation inside the clubhouse. “This is the real beginning. We’ve had a couple of exhibitions, and now we’re about to play games that count. I am looking forward to it, and I want to play well.”

In the buildup to the Seoul Series, Kim has been billed as the homecoming hero and rightfully so. In 2023, Kim grabbed the National League Gold Glove at the utility position, becoming the first Asian-born infielder to win the top defensive prize.

Kim has handled h
is many off-field duties with aplomb, and now fans will be looking for on-field success from Kim over the next two days.

Kim said he won’t put any added pressure on himself.

“I am seeing them as just two games out of our 162-game schedule,” Kim said. “First off, I have to play well. I think these games are going to be fun.”

The Padres have added some Korean touch to their season opener.

Kim has gifted his teammates and manager Mike Shildt with the traditional South Korean costume “hanbok.” Each piece is in Padres gold and adorned with the gold-flake traditional dragon-print lapel, a nod to this year being the one of the dragon.

The Padres’ “SD” logo is also present on the inside collar, and players’ jersey numbers are on the lapel.

Source: Yonhap News Agency