Hyeseong Kim's challenge: Adapting his swing in time to make the Dodgers' roster

New York Times

28-02-2025

PHOENIX — Hyeseong Kim chose this path not despite its difficulty, but because of it. He has insisted that his decision to join a crowded Los Angeles Dodgers infield this winter was fueled by the challenge ahead, choosing the reigning World Series champions over other offers that would have allowed him more agency over his transition from the Korean Baseball Organization.
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'Quite frankly, even if I chose any other teams, it would've been a challenge,' Kim said through interpreter Dean Kim on a recent morning in Arizona. 'But if I wanted to go against a challenge, I wanted to do it with the best team in the league. There just isn't any easy way to do this, so I wanted to do it with the Dodgers.'
Now comes the hard part.
Kim, a slick-fielding 26-year-old infielder, has largely fit in well during his first spring training. Teammates gravitate to his affable personality, enjoying his personalized text messages at the end of each day and finding joy in discovering that Kim cuts his own hair. Scouts have noted his defensive skills have ported over quite quickly, even when factoring in the different shifts and defensive positioning than he was used to with the Kiwoom Heroes.
It's his bat that is looking to catch up. The Dodgers gave Kim a three-year, $12.5 million deal this winter — and essentially moved on from a productive everyday second baseman in Gavin Lux in the process — partly because they believed Kim's skill set would translate well even against advanced major-league breaking balls and velocity.
'He has bat-to-ball skills, which is something that can't really be taught,' hitting coach Aaron Bates said earlier this spring. 'He has the ingredients to be great. It's just kind of fine-tuning things.'
The early returns have not been encouraging, albeit in a limited sample. His first taste of major-league pitching came on the back fields, where he waved over the first three Tyler Glasnow breaking balls he saw. Further tests haven't produced much fruit, either. In 12 Cactus League at-bats entering play Thursday, he had one hit — an infield single on a groundball he rolled over to the right side.
The Dodgers have completely revamped Kim's swing as part of their onboarding process, looking to emphasize his bat-to-ball skills while believing there is more power than his career .403 slugging percentage with the Heroes suggests. Pairing even a little more power with his bat-to-ball skills, speed, and defensive versatility (he's also worked at shortstop and center field this spring and has experience at third base) could make him a valuable piece for a title defense.
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The focus, Kim said, has been on his bat path, as he hopes to keep the barrel of his bat in the zone as long as possible to make consistent contact and allow his athleticism — a commonly noted fun fact around Camelback Ranch is that Kim's body fat percentage is the lowest on the club — to take over. His swing remains a work in progress, with the 5-foot-7, 175-pounder saying he feels it's '20, 30 percent to where I want it to be.'
'It's supposed to feel a little awkward sometimes when you're making adjustments, it's not going to feel great,' Bates said. 'He's been great the whole time. He's all in. He's been really impressive in that sense.'
Having those changes take effect requires reps, manager Dave Roberts has said. The possibility remains that those reps could happen away from Los Angeles, with Roberts suggesting to reporters this week that the door isn't closed on Kim opening the season in the minors. It's the same door that general manager Brandon Gomes left open when discussing Kim weeks ago at the spring training media days.
'I just think there's so much unknown between now and Opening Day, seeing how the roster plays out and how he looks,' Gomes said. 'But we're excited with what he's brought to the table, the energy, the defense has been really impressive and then the work ethic.'
It's a chance Kim took on himself this winter. At least one other offer, from the Angels, would have required Kim's consent before he would be optioned to the minors. His deal with the Dodgers does not afford him that privilege.
The Dodgers have alternatives. While Kim appeared slated to see most of his time at second base, Tommy Edman, Kiké Hernández and Miguel Rojas are all locks for the Opening Day roster with experience at the position. The Dodgers have sought to teach Kim center field to give them another left-handed option at the position, but they still have depth shored up there. Kim appears to be in a four-way battle for two spots on the roster alongside Chris Taylor, Andy Pages and James Outman.
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Taylor is still guaranteed at least $17 million between his $13 million salary in the final year of his deal and a $4 million buyout. He still has some defensive versatility to bolster his case, despite a crash in his offensive production in recent seasons. Pages was the most productive of the bunch offensively as a rookie but has shown some defensive lapses in center field that have continued into this spring. Outman finished third in Rookie of the Year voting two years ago and has been the Opening Day center fielder each of the past two seasons, but he has not made consistent enough contact to stick in the majors.
Then there's Kim, whom the Dodgers have taken a gamble on and still has an adjustment process to complete. Kim's age and contract structure seemingly give the Dodgers some grace when it comes to the long-term view, but they're eager to see how he handles the challenge.
Just take a tradition that went viral early in camp but started long before that. Kim's workouts with the Dodgers' infield have included an extensive number of groundballs headed by Mookie Betts at shortstop, and usually finish with each position completing a non-routine play. If they don't each successfully complete their play in order, the game starts over.
Mookie starting the Dodger chants for Hyeseong. 🥹 pic.twitter.com/NDuGSsPpNt
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) February 16, 2025
They've always slotted Kim last, raising the stakes for the infielder. Then, they began to integrate chants, hoping to imitate at least some of what the new stage at Dodger Stadium will bring.
'We just want him to be comfortable and understand he's playing for the Dodgers,' Betts said. 'There's no way to simulate any type of high-leverage situation here. That was the closest way to do it but let him know we've got his back.'
'He's been perfect,' Rojas said.
Now, the Dodgers are banking on him handling the offensive challenge with similar aplomb.
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'There's nothing easy about playing baseball in a new environment alone,' Kim said. 'Baseball is already a hard sport to play. But at the end of the day, being able to make my adjustments and the feeling of accomplishment I get from that will be greater than anything.'
(Top photo of Hyeseong Kim: Norm Hall / Getty Images)