Kim Ha-seong files blackmail complaint against ex-teammate

San Diego Padres’ infielder Kim Ha-seong has filed a complaint against a South Korean baseball player for alleged blackmail, police officials said Thursday.

Kim lodged the complaint with the Gangnam Police Station in southern Seoul last month against the player with whom he had previously worked in Korea, the officials said.

Kim reportedly claimed that the player persistently demanded money following a physical fight they had while drinking together at a Seoul bar two years ago, even after he had already received a substantial amount of settlement money.

Officials said Kim underwent questioning the previous day as a complainant, and the investigation will proceed according to due procedures.

Kim’s Seoul-based agency, Summit Management, confirmed that Kim had filed the complaint and that he had spoken with the police

Wednesday regarding the case.

“We will have no further comment at this point, since the investigation is ongoing,” an official with the company said. “We’ll have more to say later depending on the progress of the investigation.”

Kim spent the first seven years of his professional career with the Kiwoom Heroes in the Korea Baseball Organization before joining Major League Baseball (MLB) in 2021. In November, he won a Gold Glove in MLB, becoming the first Korean player to have the honor.