Sep 20, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers second baseman Hyeseong Kim (6) in the dugout prior to the game against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Has Hyeseong Kim's Rookie Year Been a Disappointment? Dodgers GM Answers

Originally posted on Los Angeles Dodgers on SI
By Aaron Coloma | Last updated Sep 26, 2025 7:18 PM ET

Los Angeles Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes commented on whether or not second baseman Hyeseong KIm has had a disappointing rookie season in the major leagues.

Kim, 26, signed a three-year, $12.5 million contract with the Dodgers in the offseason, but began the year in Triple-A to make some swing adjustments. Since coming up in May, he has played in 68 games and stepped up to the plate 162 times.

“Not at all,” Gomes said. “I think for Hyeseong he made some meaningful strides with his swing. We feel even better about the defense, the baserunning – which we thought highly of. He’s an excellent defender, can really run the bases. We think there’s going to be versatility there with the potential to play the outfield in the future at a high level. And I think some of the hitting growing pains – we’ve seen some high highs and some low lows. I think overall with his makeup and his work ethic we’ll bet on him being able to continue to make the needed adjustments to be a successful offensive player.”

In the time he has been given, Kim has been fairly productive at the plate despite his lack of power. He's batting .281 this season with a .317 OPS and .373 slugging percentage. Kim hit the ground running in MLB, batting .422 and hitting his only two home runs in his first month in the bigs.

He followed that month with another solid month, maintaining his high batting average with a 12-for-36 run in June. However, 80 percent of Kim's RBIs this season came in his first two months in MLB.

Things haven't gone quite as well for Kim since the beginning of July, spending all of August on the injured list and seeing his batting average take a nosedive below .300 after a 12-for-72 stretch.

Despite his hitting numbers over the last few months, Kim has still been an extremely valuable player for the Dodgers. He played 21 games in July while the Dodgers struggled with injuries among their position players, and has a solid glove. His Fielding Run Value of 1 ranks him just above average in MLB.

While Kim has certainly had his struggles this season, if he can continue to grow at the MLB level and learn from his recent cold streak, he will be an asset for the Dodgers moving forward.