San Diego Padres news: Ha Seong-Kim injury, All-Star Game snub, Futures Game

SEATTLE — Start your Saturday with some of the latest San Diego Padres news as the All-Star Game festivities kick into high gear in Seattle.

San Diego Padres injury news: Ha-Seong Kim

While All-Star activities ramp up in the Pacific Northwest (and Kim should be a part of the NL squad, by the way, but more about that in a few sentences), there is a watch on Kim after an incident during Friday night's loss to the New York Mets.

After being thrown out at third base in the bottom of the seventh inning, Kim took out his frustrations on a water cooler in the Padres dugout. Apparently, the water cooler won the battle, casting doubts on the infielder's availability for the rest of the series.

After he was thrown out, Ha-Seong Kim kicked a cooler he thought was empty in the dugout stairwell. He's day-to-day with a jammed right big toe.

"I take full responsibility of the play I made and then also the mistake I made," he said. "In the future that's not going to happen."
— AJ Cassavell (@AJCassavell) July 8, 2023

Speaking of Kim (who leads the Padres entering Saturday with 4.0 bWAR, but has just 2.9 fWAR), he could well have been overlooked for the All-Star Game yet again after Arizona's Geraldo Perdomo was added to the NL squad when Chicago's Dansby Swanson was knocked out with an injury). What more could Kim do to earn a spot in the Midsummer Classic? It's a great question to ask, but few answers seem to be available.

Wondering why the Diamondbacks’ Geraldo Perdomo (2.4 fWAR) was named an NL All-Star replacement over the Mets’ Francisco Lindor (3.0)? According to the league, Perdomo earned his place as a result of the player balloting.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 7, 2023

San Diego Padres prospect news: Futures Game information

Padres prospect Jackson Merrill will take part in Saturday's Major League Baseball’s 2023 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game. The game will take place at 4 p.m. (Pacific time) and will be televised on Peacock.

Merrill enters the game slashing .280/.318/.444 in 279 at-bats and is ranked as the top San Diego prospect by MLB.com. The 20-year-old Merrill will be showcased as part of the NL prospects team in a game that will last just seven innings on Saturday, so be aware of the shorter game if you're going to watch the contest.

We are live in Seattle and will have coverage of Merrill's contributions to the game later here on the site.

Editor's note: As promised, here is that interview with Merrill.