The Oklahoma Metropolis Triple-A staff was renamed the Comets earlier than this season to honor Mickey Mantle — nicknamed the “Commerce Comet” for his Oklahoma hometown and his galactic expertise — nevertheless it may not be lengthy earlier than the nickname turns into related to one other star.
And wouldn’t you recognize it, he ended up with the Comets to begin his tenure within the group. It’s the sort of fate-driven occasion that may solely occur as soon as each 100 years or so.
On Friday, Kim channeled Mantle by hitting his first stateside residence run. The 26-year-old from Goyang, South Korea led off the sport with Spherical Rock with a blast that may have briefly regarded like a comet towards the Texas sky.
Final season in Korea, Kim hit a career-best 11 residence runs. His homer on Friday got here towards a staff, the Categorical, named after one other baseball legend, Nolan Ryan.
Whereas the Comets-Categorical matchup evoked recollections of the sport’s legends, Kim’s first residence run supplied a glimpse of what may grow to be an out-of-this-world future for baseball’s latest comet.
