The Seattle Mariners have exactly one infield position figured out for the 2025 season, and that’s a massive concern.
Sure, Luke Raley seems like a solid bet to play some first base, and new addition Donovan Solano can help fill in some gaps. But shortstop J.P. Crawford is the only player on the team who’s ever played a full season as a Mariners infielder before.
Second base has plagued Seattle in the past, and as things stand, it looks like it will again in 2025. But there’s still time left to make an impact signing this winter, and perhaps one free agent’s injury status will play in their favor.
Ha Seong Kim, the former San Diego Padres Gold Glover, is hoping to make his return at the end of April. Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller recently predicted that Kim would land with the Mariners, with a backloaded $36 million contract making sense for all parties.
“Kim’s market is complicated by the fact that he is still recovering from labrum surgery and might miss the first month (or more) of the upcoming season,” Miller said. “Because of that, though, he could be the perfect fit/target for a Seattle team with little to no money to spend but a dire need for infield help.”
“Maybe the Mariners could sell him on something like a three-year, $36M deal where he gets $8M in 2025 and $14M in each of the next two seasons—presumably able to pay HSK more in 2026 and 2027 once they’re no longer devoting $30M to the combined ‘force’ of Mitch Haniger and Mitch Garver.”
Kim might not be the offensive star the Mariners are always seeking, but he’d still likely hit better than most of the second basemen they’ve had throughout the last few seasons. His career OPS+ is 99, which makes him a valuable performer at a premium defensive position.
As the Mariners found out in 2024, Crawford isn’t a lock to stay healthy, either. Kim would be a perfect fill-in shortstop in the event Crawford goes down again, keeping Dylan Moore in his bench/utility role.
There’s really no reason for the Mariners to avoid signing Kim other than money. If he’s within their price range, he makes perfect sense in Seattle.
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