Top 2 Fits For Free Agent Gold Glover Ha-Seong Kim

After spending his first four years in the major leagues with the San Diego Padres, it appears there's a good chance that free agent Ha-Seong Kim will be taking his Gold Glove to greener pastures this offseason.

Kim's meal ticket is his defense, as he was a finalist for the Gold Glove at shortstop in 2022, and won the award as a second baseman in 2023. His 2024 was cut short after 121 games due to a labrum tear in his right shoulder in August. Despite holding out hope he could return for the playoffs, Kim had surgery in October. He will be delayed to start the 2025 season–perhaps to late April or early May–which could be impacting his free agency a bit.

Here are two teams that are the best fits for the slick-fielding Korean shortstop/second baseman:

Atlanta Braves

The usually active Alex Antholopoulos hasn't done a thing yet this offseason, and in fact his team has lost 2/5ths of its starting rotation with the losses of Max Fried and Charlie Morton in free agency.

But shortstop is certainly an area they need help as well, after the disappointing season had by Orlando Arcia in 2024. He posted an ugly OPS+ of 73, and his career mark isn't much better than that.

Pundits everywhere are suggesting that Kim will land with the Braves on a multi-year deal. While his defense is better than Acria's, he is at least a league-average hitter (career OPS+ of 99), and had a pretty nice offensive season in '23, when he got on base over 35% of the time. He'd be a much surer bet for the Braves going forward.

Boston Red Sox

The Red Sox "would be a really good spot for Kim," said insider and former GM Jim Bowden on MLB Network Radio Sunday morning. "That would allow Trevor Story to stay at 2B," as well as allowing their young middle-infield prospects to develop further in the minors.

"It would really improve the left-side defense of the Red Sox. Putting Kim next to (the not-so-defensively strong third baseman Rafael) Devers would be great."

Bowden suggests only a one-year deal for Kim in Boston, however, due to the system's rising prospects Marcelo Mayer and Kristian Campbell.

Kim finished 2024 with 11 home runs, 47 RBIs, 22 stolen bases, and a .700 OPS for a 96 OPS+.