The KBO’s Kiwoom Heroes have made second baseman Hyeseong Kim available to sign by any MLB team after posting the 25-year-old on Wednesday.
Kim is the first player from South Korea and Japan to be posted this offseason. Japanese pitching prospect Roki Sasaki is expected to be posted sometime this winter.
Last week, ahead of news of his posting, Kim traveled to Los Angeles to begin training.
Kim would be the fifth player from the Heroes to sign with an MLB team following Kang Jung-ho (Pittsburgh Pirates), Park Byung-ho (Minnesota Twins), Kim Ha-seong (San Diego Padres), and Lee Jung-hoo (San Francisco Giants).
Every MLB team is able to negotiate a deal with Kim beginning at 8 a.m. ET on Thursday. Teams have 30 days to work out a deal, with the negotiating period ending at 5 p.m. ET on Jan. 3, 2025.
The Heroes will receive a fee should Kim sign with an MLB team before the end of the negotiating period. The total received by the KBO team will be determined by the guaranteed amount in Kim’s contract.
According to Jee-ho Yoo of Yonhap News, KBO teams receive a fee of 20% of the first $25 million of the contract and 17.5% of the total exceeding the next $25 million. If the contract is worth more than $50 million, the KBO team receives 20% of the first $25 million, 17.5% of the next $25 million, plus 15% of the total exceeding $50 million.
If Kim does not sign with an MLB team, he will return to the Heroes and cannot be posted again until after Nov. 1, 2025.
Kim, a left-handed hitter, is coming off a career season with the Heroes where he hit 11 home runs, drove in 75 runs, stole 30 bases and posted a .326 batting average. It was the fourth straight season he hit over .300 and seventh straight season with at least 20 stolen bases.
Over his eight-season career, Kim has slashed .304/.364/.403 with 386 RBI over 953 games. His 211 steals since 2018 is the most among any KBO player during that span.
Defensively, he’s a three-time KBO Fielding Award winner. He first won the award in 2021 at shortstop and then again in 2022 and 2023 at second base.
The Seattle Mariners are reportedly keen on landing Kim. Other spots could include the San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants. Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said during spring training that the team’s scouts liked Kim.