Dodgers Sign Hyeseong Kim Dodgers Sign Hyeseong Kim

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With hours left to go before his posting window closes,  and the Dodgers signed a three-year contract worth $12.5MM. The deal includes a two-year club option (which would need to be exercised together) covering the 2028-29 seasons. If the Dodgers exercise the option, theyd pay an additional $ Floyd Bannister Jersey 9.5MM over those two years. Los Angeles catcher for a signment to open a 40-man roster spot. Kim is represented by CAA Sports.  Kims former team, the Kiwoom Heroes, officially posted him on December 5, giving him until 4:00 PM CT this afternoon to sign with an MLB club. As the days ticked by and the rumor mill remained relatively quiet, it seemed like a legitimate po sibility that Kim would return for one more season with the Heroes. Instead, the Dodgers, who hadnt been closely linked to Kim this winter, swooped in and made a winning offer in the nick of time. In addition to Kims salary, the Dodgers will have to pay a $2.5MM release fee to the Heroes (20% of the guaranteed $12.5MM on his deal). Their total investment is $15MM.  Kim, soon to be 26, is a four-time consecutive winner of the KBO Golden Glove Award, given annually to the best overall player at each position. He won the award at shortstop in 2021 before moving to second base and winning each year from 2022-24. In addition to playing a strong second base and at least a capable shortstop, Kim is also an a set on the basepaths. He led the KBO in stolen bases in 2021 and has swiped at least 20 bags in all seven full seasons of his career. His glove and legs should give him a relatively high floor as a utility player in MLB, if nothing more.  The big question is how Kims bat will hold up against MLB pitching. While he struggled at the plate early in his career, the lefty batter blo somed into a well-above-average hitter during his last three years in the KBO. From 2022-24, he produced a .326 batting average and a .384 OBP, while his wRC+ was never below 118 in any season. However, Kim has never hit for much power, even by the slightly lower power standards of the KBO. His 2024 season was the best of his career power-wise  he reached double-digit home runs for the first time  but his .132 isolated power was still below league average. Thus, its fair to worry that Kim might not have the nece sary power to be an everyday player in MLB. Just look at his former KBO teammate  . Ha-Seong Kim was a genuine power threat in the KBO, socking 30 homers in 138 games during his final season in Korea. Since coming to MLB, he has become known as a soft-hitting contact specialist. His career .137 ISO in MLB is 15% worse than the league average over the last four years.  When MLBTR ranked Hyseong Kim at no. 26 on our list, we predicted hed sign a three-year, $24MM contract. His actual deal guarantees him a little more than half of that predicted salary. That said, its worth mentioning that Kim reportedly turned down more money from at least one other team. A representative from Kims agency, CAA Baseball, told a Korean media outlet (pa sed along by ) that the Angels offered him a five-year, $28MM deal, while the Mariners, Cubs, and Padres also made offers with undisclosed terms. Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register . According to Fletcher, the Angels made an offer to Kim but did not top what he received from the Dodgers.  To that point, Kim might not have a guaranteed starting role in L.A. The Dodgers already have  to play second base,  at shortstop, and  holding down the hot corner. Furthermore, they have the talented defensive shortstop  and the versatile  on the bench. Center fielder  can also play all around the infield.  According to , Kim will play a super-utility role in 2025. The use of the prefix super seems to imply that hell be playing several positions. While he has significant experience at both shortstop and second base, he has only played a handful of games at third base in his profe sional career. He also played 44 games in left field during the 2020 season, and it will be interesting to see if the Dodgers consider using him in the outfield at all. As a super-utility player, Kim will presumably have a bigger role than that of a typical bench bat, but with so much competition on the Dodgers talent-filled roster, hell have to earn his playing time.  The fact that the Dodgers signed Kim despite already having so many infielders is evidence of how much this team values depth and flexibility. Its also a sign of how much they value what Kim can bring to the table. Funnily enough, manager Dave Roberts has already made his teams affinity for Kim quite clear. After the Dodgers played an exhibition match against the Korean national team last March, Roberts told reporters (including ), Our scouts like the second baseman: just the way his body moves. That second baseman, of course, was Kim.  Various reports out of South Korea were first with the news that Kim was signing with Los Angeles on a three-year deal with a two-year club option. was first to report the $12.5MM guarantee and the $22MM maximum value.  Jhonathan Diaz Jersey