Why Kim Hye-sung chose the Dodgers despite a smaller salary and a competition for a starting player that is not easy to break through
Why Kim Hye-sung chose the Dodgers despite a smaller salary and a competition for a starting player that is not easy to break through
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Nor does she want to pay more. The team is strong enough to win the 2024 World Series and has many star-studded players, making it difficult for the team to break through the competition to become a starting member. Despite this, Kim Hye-sung (27), the best second baseman in the KBO League, chose the Los Angeles Dodgers. Why did Kim choose the Dodgers.토토사이트
The Dodgers officially announced on the 4th (Korea time) that they signed a contract with Kim Hye-sung. The guaranteed amount is $12.5 million (18.4 billion won) for three years. If a five-year contract is triggered due to the club's option at stake in the next two years, it will increase up to 22 million dollars (about 32.4 billion won).
According to the Associated Press, Kim will be paid 1 million dollars as a down payment. Kim will be paid 2.5 million dollars this season. He will be paid 3.75 million dollars each in 2026 and 2027. The club has an option of 5 million dollars in 2028 and 2029. If the Dodgers extend its contract, its annual salary will increase to 5 million dollars.
Kim Hye-sung, who played as a top infielder in the KBO League, won the Golden Glove once as a shortstop (2022-2024) and three times as a second baseman (2022-2024), has shown her willingness to enter the U.S. Major League early, and after the end of the 2023 season, she was granted permission by Kiwoom to advance to the big league through the posting system. In June last year, she signed with CAA Sports, famous for being the agent of Shohei Ohtani, the world's best superstar.
Kim's posting was posted at 2 a.m. on April 5. The deadline for negotiations was 7 a.m. on April 4 in Korean time. Kim, who left for the U.S. at the end of November, was belatedly reported to have returned to Korea early on April 23. Although it turned out that she was returning to Korea to follow the military service law, some speculated that her entry into the big league may be thwarted as she returned home without any income. No news was heard about the contract just one day before the deadline, but when she signed the contract with the Dodgers three hours before the deadline, she achieved her "American dream."
Dodgers is not the only option for Kim. According to CAA Sports, five other teams besides Dodgers have proposed contracts, including the 5LA Angels, San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners, Cincinnati Reds and Chicago Cubs. Some of them had specific contract terms. The Los Angeles Angels, which is based in Los Angeles with the Dodgers, reportedly offered a five-year, 28-million-dollar contract.
At first glance, going to five clubs except the Dodgers is a team that can give big leaguer Kim Hye-sung more opportunities to play. The Angels have guaranteed five years of contract and the guaranteed amount is much higher than that of the Dodgers.
Nevertheless, Kim chose Dodgers. Why? A CAA Sports source said, "I chose Dodgers considering various circumstances. One of the reasons was that Ohtani is from the same agency. We also met and exchanged messages in person when Kim was staying in the U.S." Ohtani also wrote "Welcome, my friend" in Korean through an Instagram story after the news of Kim's contract became public.
The Dodgers are so popular with Korean Major League fans that they are called the "National Dodgers" (National Team Dodgers) because they belong to "Korean Express" Park Chan-ho and "Korean Monster" Ryu Hyun-jin.
The joy of being part of the most prestigious team in the Major League is brief. In a realistic and objective manner, it is not easy for Kim to become a starting player full-time. The Dodgers beat the New York Yankees to win the 2024 World Series and are truly a star team. There are three former MVP players. Ohtani (American League 2021, 2023, National League 2024), Mookie Betts (American League 2018), and Freddie Freeman (National League 2020) are all three former MVP players.
The starting lineup is also spectacular. Along with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the star of the biggest 12-year contract (325 million U.S. dollars) for a pitcher in the Major League history, Ohtani will join the starting lineup as a pitcher and batter in the 2025 season. In addition, Tyler Glasnow has Blake Snell, who was hired as an FA in the Stove League. Snell is the top paid player in the team with 36.4 million dollars in the 2025 season. (Ohtani signed a 700 million-dollar contract for 10 years, but will be paid 2 million dollars annually from 2024 to 2033 as a dipper.)
Kim Hye-sung, who has been playing shortstop for a long time, can play second base as the main player. The owner of the Dodgers' second base is Gavin Lux. He is a promising player that the Dodgers has fostered, but he has not shown as much growth as expected, with a batting average of 0.251 with 10 homers, 50 RBIs and five steals in the 2024 season. However, Lux is not the only one who can play second base in the Dodgers. There are also backup infielders such as Chris Taylor, Miguel Rojas, and Tommy Edman. If Kim is to take the main position, he will have to beat all of them. It is not easy. There is a possibility that Mookie Betts, who starts the season as shortstop, will move to second base due to burden of defense.
Moreover, Kim's annual salary of 2.5 million dollars is a huge amount of money in the KBO league, but it is not that big of money for the Dodgers, which ranks first in the pay roll of the Major League. In fact, Kim's annual salary is around the 20th in her team. If Ohtani, who is only receiving 2 million dollars, is consoled, she will further fall to 21st place. In other words, the 2.5 million dollar that the Dodgers gives to Kim is a waste, and thus does not give her a chance to play.
Eventually, Kim has a way to survive and develop utility skills that not only second baseman but also shortstop, third baseman and corner outfielder can play. In addition, his slugging capability, which he garnered double-digit home runs for just one season in the KBO league, is highly likely to be the lowest in the MLB. To offset this, he should record a batting average of 0.280 or higher and 20 or more stolen bases with his strong points of contact ability and fast feet.
Was Kim's choice right? Wouldn't it have been wiser for Kim, a freshman in the Major League, to choose a club that is easier to win the starting position and guarantees more money? Of course, she has shown strong performance from the spring camp, and there is a chance that she will become a resource beyond the level of a team that will definitely lead the team. For this reason, Kim is expected to perform well in the 2025 season.