Possible Seattle Mariners Target Hye-Seong Kim Draws Praise For Defensive Ability
The Seattle Mariners are in a familiar position this offseason.
Even since the Mariners traded Robinson Cano in 2018, second base has been a perpetual need for the franchise. The club traded for Jorge Polanco on Jan. 29, 2024. But an injury-plagued season for Polanco led to Seattle declining his $12 million option on Friday, leaving the club searching for a starting second baseman for 2025.
And, according to reports, the Mariners could look outside the country to find the answer at the position.
Seattle has been linked to KBO League infielder Hye-Seong Kim (no relation to free agent major leaguer Ha-Seong Kim) by several outlets.
MLB Network's Jon Morosi has said the 25-year old infielder has been "closely evaluated" by the Mariners. MLB Trade Rumors projected a three-year, $24 million dollar contract for Kim, placing him well within the Mariners' price range and giving solid club control.
The Mariners, known to be in the 2B market, are among the teams that have closely evaluated infielder Hye-seong Kim, whom the Kiwoom Heroes will post this offseason.
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) November 6, 2024
Kim, a left-handed batter, had an .841 OPS and 30 SB at age 25 in KBO this season.@MLBNetwork @SeattleSports
The KBO is South Korea's premiere baseball league. The last notable free agent out of the KBO was Jung Hoo Lee, who signed with the San Francisco Giants and played 37 games before suffering a season-ending shoulder dislocation. Lee impressed in his 37-game sample size, hitting .262 with two home runs and eight RBIs.
Kim was a solid contact hitter with a .327 batting average and an .841 OPS in 2024. He also hit 11 home runs and had 75 RBIs. He stole 30 bases.
The Kiwoom Heroes have agreed to post 24-year-old 2B Hye-seong Kim to MLB clubs after the 2024 season. 🇰🇷
— Shawn Spradling (@Shawn_Spradling) January 16, 2024
Kim is one of the best players in Korea, and was 3rd in WAR in KBO last year (2023):
6.48 WAR
.335/.396/.446
186 H
57 RBI
7 HR
25 SB
Dozens of defensive highlights pic.twitter.com/yALpskwXg1
But it's been Kim's defense that's gotten the most praise in recent days.
Content creator Mariner Muse (@MarinerMuse on "X"), shared an excerpt from a story in the Korea Time lauding Kim's defense on Wednesday. The excerpt said:
"By advanced fielding metrics, Kim hasn't just been the best second baseman in the KBO this year; he has been on of the best defenders at any position, period."
From the Korea Times today on Hye-seong Kim, who also slashed .327/.384/.459 with 30 steals this past season: pic.twitter.com/1kxU2tqJ6A
— Mariner Muse (@MarinerMuse) November 6, 2024
Kim would be a departure from Seattle's past approach at second base. They've opted recently to go for veteran options like Adam Frazier, Kolten Wong and Polanco.
But past results might result in the Mariners choosing to go outside of their comfort zone (and hemisphere) to find their second baseman of the future.
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