Kim already turning heads in camp: 'He has the ingredients to be great'

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- When it comes to first impressions of Hyeseong Kim, the Dodgers have been fairly consistent in their descriptions.

"He's a lot stronger than I expected," manager Dave Roberts said. "I think he's one of the [lowest] body fat guys in our camp."

"He¡¯s fast, he¡¯s athletic," first baseman Freddie Freeman said a few days later. "I¡¯ve heard he¡¯s got the lowest body-fat percentage on our team."

Kim is used to others bringing up his physical fitness; his former teammates in the KBO said the same. But don't let the reports of his skill with the glove be lost in all the chatter.

Early on in his first big league camp, Kim has particularly impressed with his defense. He's a four-time Golden Glove Award winner, which honors the best overall player at each position in the KBO, winning the award in each of the past three seasons at second base after claiming it at shortstop in 2021.

That said, there are some questions surrounding Kim, who joined the Dodgers in January on a three-year, $12.5 million contract after being posted by the KBO's Kiwoom Heroes: where he'll play, and how he'll handle big league pitching.

Naturally, the answers to those questions are somewhat tied together.

"I think that he can certainly win ballgames with his defense alone," Roberts said. "Then the question is the development part. What's good for him? What's good for the Dodgers? And that, we don't have to answer right now."

If he shows he can stick in the everyday lineup, Kim could potentially earn the job at second base, which may be the Dodgers' most unresolved position in the wake of the offseason deal that sent Gavin Lux to the Reds. But if Los Angeles is unsure about his bat, Kim could instead be used as a left-handed superutility option.

"I'm not tied down to a single position, so I'm practicing at every single position that I get a chance to," Kim said, with international scout Dean Kim interpreting. "I'm going to prepare whenever I'm called on to play any position that Doc would want me to play."

Per Roberts, Kim is expected to get reps at second base, third base and center field this spring. Although Kim never logged any time in center in a KBO game, he made 44 appearances in left in 2020. He also grew up playing the outfield before he reached high school and feels more comfortable playing center field rather than a corner, as he prefers tracking down balls from that vantage point.

At the plate, Kim is known for his bat-to-ball skills. The Dodgers are high on his underlying skill set, which they believe will translate to the higher velocity in the Major Leagues in due time.

Kim is currently working on making adjustments to his bat path, and hitting coach Aaron Bates has been impressed by his progress.

"He has the ingredients to be great," Bates said. "It's just kind of fine-tuning things. Obviously, he was a great player in Korea and has all the components, so it's just making some tweaks here and there. All the while, letting him play and play free, mentally."

When Kim is in the field, he does just that. Toward the end of infield practice on Sunday, Kim was about to field the last grounder of the session before Mookie Betts got the attention of the fans watching off to the side and started up a "Let's go Dodgers" chant.

Kim just grinned, charged in to field the ball cleanly and hit his target at first base.

"Mookie was having fun with him and trying to kind of create a little bit of environment or pressure for him," Roberts said. "Inclusion. And so that's telling, that people already gravitate toward him."

For Kim, the biggest adjustment of all this season might not be anything he does on the field -- but rather that he's playing in a new league and living in a new country. So far, he's felt embraced by teammates and fans alike, something that has eased his transition.

"It's a whole new feeling I'm getting, just being welcomed by all these fans," Kim said. "When they call my name out -- 'Kim! Kim!' -- I'm definitely thankful that fans know my name and they want to interact with me."