When Ha-Seong Kim arrived at Spring Training, he was expecting to be taking most of his reps at second base. That all changed when manager Mike Shildt announced on Friday that Kim would be the starting shortstop.
After winning a Gold Glove last year as a utility infielder, the Padres had some internal conversations about switching Kim and Xander Bogaerts.
“(Kim) is an elite defender,” manager Mike Shildt said Friday morning shortly after making the position swap official following a conversation with Bogaerts before the team’s first full-squad workout of spring training.
Kim started 98 games at second base, 29 at third and 16 at shortstop last season. He was the team's primary shortstop in 2022 before Bogaerts signed an 11-year deal with San Diego.
"I didn't really expect it at all. That news coming from Mr. Shildt yesterday but I think it's a really big motivation for me to play my original position at shortstop and I think I'll need to work harder to put in a better performance than I did in the previous years."
Bogaerts has never played second base in the major leagues, but he was open to the switch and doing whatever it takes to help the team win a World Series. For Kim, he is "very grateful" that his double-play partner was open to the move.
The switch on the field began on Saturday with Bogaerts working on his new-angle double-play turn.
The Padres will see the new infield lineup in action when they open Cactus League play on Thursday against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
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