Padres land Korean slugger Sung-Mun Song after Michael King deal

The Padres grabbed a slugger and a pitcher in short time.San Diego has agreed to a deal with Korean star infielder Sung-Mun Song on the heels of its three-year, $75 million deal with Michael King, The Post’s Jon Heyman confirmed.Song, 29, primarily has played third base in the Korean Baseball Organization, although he also has experience at second base and a little at first base.The lefty slugger is coming off his two best seasons with Kiwoom, slashing .315/.387/.530 with a .917 OPS this past season while adding 26 homers, 90 RBIs and 25 steals.In 2024, he slashed .340/.409/.518 with a .927 OPS.He added 19 homers, 104 RBIs and 21 steals.Before those two breakout seasons, Song had only topped a .700 OPS once.

He also had only tallied five career steals before notching 46 over the last two seasons.For his nine-season career, he’s a .283 hitter with a .779 OPS, while contributing 80 homers.The Padres are landing him right before his 30-day window to sign is set to expire Dec.21, according to MLB Trade Rumors.Song joins a Padres team that is rumored to be seeking a blockbuster move this offseason after losing to the Cubs in three games in the wild-card round last season.His best path to playing time is likely at first base, with Manny Machado manning the hot corner and Jake Cronenworth mostly playing second base last season.The Padres acquired Ryan O’Hearn at last year’s trade deadline to man first base and he is a free agent.It’s possible Song could be used more in a reserve role than as a starter, depending on what the Padres do the rest of the offseason.San Diego previously enjoyed success signing another KBO star in Ha-Seong Kim, who finished 14th in NL MVP voting in 2023 and won a Gold Glove.Before landing Song, the Padres retained a key piece of their rotation by re-signing King to a three-year deal that includes player options for the 2027 and 2028 seasons....