Among a flurry of off-season activity, the San Diego Padres touched up an international flare. The Padres officially came to terms with Korean Baseball Organization star Ha-seong Kim.
The Details on the Ha-seong Kim Deal
While terms are not yet set, the thought is that Kim’s initial duration will land anywhere from four to six years. In terms of money, some experts such as Joel Sherman of the New York Post, expect Kim to receive anywhere from $7 million to $8 million in average annual value. That could equate to roughly $20 million or more for the entire contract.
Hearing #Padres are frontrunner for Kim. Deal not done from what I hear. Deal likely fewer than six years. Annual pay expected in the $7-$8M range. Would play 2b if this finalized with Cronenworth probably going to LF.
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) December 28, 2020
While that may be the price point that Kim could be raking in, the Padres will be spending quite a bit of money overall. Kim was posted earlier this month by the Kiwoom Heros. They will be receiving a posting fee that the Padres will pay in addition to Kim’s contract. That fee will equal 20 percent of the contract’s first $25 million, 17.5 percent of the next $25 million, and 15 percent of anything spent further.
Kim is the third KBO hitter with a successful posting and joins Minnesota Twins first baseman Byung-Ho Park and former Pittsburgh Pirates infielder Jung-Ho Kang. Both contracts were below what Kim might receive with Park’s initial contract at $12 million, while Kang’s initial contract was worth $11 million.
A Versatile Player
Kim projects as quite the solid hitter, perfect for a team like San Diego who has drastically improved both the pitching and hitting side of things recently. He projects as a solid offensive compliment to an already strong offensive core in San Diego led by Fernando Tatis Jr, Manny Machado, and Eric Hosmer. Kim also brings slightly more experience at this stage of the game compared to his predecessors with having started his seven year KBO career at the ripe age of 18.
Across his playing tenure, Kim slashed .294/.373/.493 with 133 home runs through his 891 games. In addition, Kim has shown the ability to provide danger on the basepaths with 134 stolen bases over that sample. Over the past two years alone he recorded two of his top three performances in stolen bases with a career-high 33 back in 2019 and 23 in 2020. Furthermore, Kim has sported an OPS mark below .830 just once in his playing tenure which came in his very first season back in 2014. That also included going 56-for-62 in stolen base attempts since 2019.
Kim has also proven to be a hitter strong hitter even though he may not produce a 20 home run mark each season. Eleven percent of Kim’s at-bats have resulted in extra-base hits throughout his career, including 114 alone over the past two seasons. When compared to those in the MLB, Kim has projected to be a well-above-average hitter with a wRC+ mark 42 percent higher than the league average. There’s no doubt Kim has handled the bat well, and he illustrated that with a 10.9 percent strikeout rate in 2020 and a cumulative 13.7 percent across his entire career.
Where to Land
No matter what, it’s expected that Kim will land on a regular role in the 2021 campaign. It’s doubtful that he’ll end up at third-base and shortstop as Machado and Tatis Jr. are penciled in for San Diego at those positions. However, there is talk about Kim moving to second-base with Rookie of the Year runner-up Jake Cronenworth potentially moving to left field.
Kim possesses an ability to track down the ball well horizontally which makes him a strong candidate to make the move to second. A plus-plus arm could make him a consistent utility piece if needed. In addition, Kim has a strong ability to be consistent both at the plate and in the field. That versatility could make him a lethal weapon no matter where he lands on the field or in the batting order.
The addition of Ha-seong Kim adds to what has already been quite an offseason for the San Diego Padres who is a team going all-in to compete in 2021.
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