The same day, the Dodgers officially welcomed back one of the key pieces of its 2024 World Series team in Teoscar Hernándezthey also made an unexpected addition in free agency.
Shortly before the Dodgers completed the three-year, $66 million signing of Hernández, the team also reached an agreement Friday to sign the South Korean infielder. Hyeseong Kima 25-year-old utility man with a valuable glove and, in the words of general manager Brandon Gomes, “real upside to the bat.”
Kim’s deal, which will be for three years and $12.5 million plus a two-year option in 2028 and 2029 that could increase his value to $22 million, added another versatile player to the Dodgers’ title defense plans — but also raised speculation about other potentially upcoming moves on the team’s 2025 roster.
Learn more: Teoscar Hernández agrees to three-year, $66 million contract with Dodgers
“I think we’re more of adding a really talented player, and (then we’ll) see where things go,” Gomes said of Kim’s addition, downplaying the idea that the Dodgers now need to immediately trade a another player on their team. A suddenly crowded collection of infielders. “It helps to have really strong pieces in a lot of different areas. So that’s how we’re looking at it right now.”
During eight seasons in the Korean Baseball Organization, left-handed hitting Kim hit .304 while playing second base, shortstop, third base and left field.
After being assigned by his Korean club, the Kiwoom Heroes, earlier this offseason, Kim’s deadline to sign with an MLB team was Friday.
Coincidentally, the news came shortly before a scheduled press conference for Hernández, who agreed to re-sign with the Dodgers last week after accumulating 33 homers and 99 RBIs on a one-year deal in 2024 .
“A one-year contract for a player doesn’t always turn into an extension or a multi-year contract,” said manager Dave Roberts, sitting alongside Gomes and Hernández in the right-field clubhouse at Dodger Stadium. “But what he did for us and how he made everyone better, that was a no-brainer.”
Learn more: Plaschke: Fans are heard, title hopes are solidified, Teoscar Hernández is back with the Dodgers
Indeed, retaining Hernández always seemed like a big task for the Dodgers this offseason, especially as they try to preserve the clubhouse culture that ensured their title run in 2024.
In his first year with the team, Hernández played a crucial role both on the field as a producer behind star hitters Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman, and also with his uplifting veteran presence in the behind the scenes.
Gomes joked that even his 8-year-old daughter “has asked me every day since the season ended, ‘Are we bringing Teo back?’ »
“All jokes aside, I think it says a lot about who Teo is as a player and a person,” Gomes added. “You can feel the energy he brings to the clubhouse, the infectious smile he has every day.”
Although Hernández settled for a one-year deal with the Dodgers last winter when his free agent market didn’t develop as he hoped, he said staying in Los Angeles was his main priority this year and that he was willing to take less money. (along with the $23 million in carryovers included in his new contract) to do so.
“The Dodgers are different,” Hernández said. “They think of everyone. Not just the players, not just the things I can do on the pitch. For me, they just give me confidence. I’ve never really had that in any other place I’ve worked. They trust everything I can give them, as well as this team and this organization. And that’s one of the most important things to me, that pushed me to do the best work I could.
Kim’s arrival, however, could signal other potential changes to come to the club’s 2025 roster, leaving the team with a host of middle-field options for next year.
Gomes said the Dodgers’ current ‘mentality’ is to keep playing Mookie Betts at shortstop And Gavin Lux at second base, as they had planned before Kim signed.
The team may have to share playing time beyond them, with Miguel Rojas, Chris Taylor and Tommy Edman also on the roster (although Edman, who signed a five-year contract extension more early this winter, can primarily play center field alongside Hernández on the right and Michael Conforto on the left).
Signing Kim could also reduce the Dodgers’ need for another utility man such as Kiké Hernández, the only position player from last year’s World Series team who is not yet under contract with the club.
The Dodgers, of course, could always explore a trade to streamline their depth chart. But Lux, who has long been the subject of such rumors, was repeatedly praised by team officials for his performance last year after returning from a torn ACL in 2023. Rojas and Taylor, meanwhile, both come from 2024 campaigns marked by either inconsistent health (Rojas only played 103 regular season games despite hitting .283, and was out for much of the playoffs) or performance (Taylor hit a career-low .202 for the entire season while battling injuries of his own) as they each enter their final season under contract.
For now, Gomes insisted the Dodgers “don’t feel like we necessarily have to do anything,” and pointed to the team’s injury issues last year as a reason to preserve as much depth as possible before spring training.
On Friday, the only other action that was required of the club to finalize the contracts of Hernández and Kim was to open a 40-player roster, which it did by designating the minor league catcher and former best hopeful Diego Cartaya for assignment.
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This story was originally published in Los Angeles Times.
