A season-ending injury has put the future of one San Diego Padres infielder in jeopardy.
Picking up Ha-Seong Kim’s $8 million is a no-brainer as he is due a lucrative pay day in free agency, but his labrum surgery could complicate things.
General manager A.J. Preller said Monday that the procedure was completed earlier this month in Los Angeles by Dr. Neal ElAttrache and comes with a timeline that pushes the start of his throwing program toward the beginning of the 2025 season.
That means that Kim might not be ready to play until “May, June, July,” Preller said.
“That’s kind of the first question after the World Series that we’ve got to weigh,” Preller said, “ … whether we want to pick it up as a team, and he’ll do the same on his front and then we’ll get more information. After that, we’ll keep gathering information on the injury standpoint, where that leaves him and us. But again, Ha-seong’s very talented player. I think we felt that at the end of the year, not having him here. It definitely was a blow. And he’s a guy who plays the game with a ton of energy. He’s an intelligent baseball player. He defends the field really well. He can play all different spots, take a walk, he can hit a home run, he can steal a base. That’s the way we evaluate him, and that’s a really talented and valuable player. And again, like, I think, from our standpoint, we’d love to bring him back.
“I think we just got to kind of get into it and see where that leaves us.”
Because Kim is going to miss the first half of the season, the Padres will have to figure out a temporary starting shortstop. It could be Xander Bogaerts, Jackson Merrill, or Fernando Tatis Jr.
Bogaerts is the favorite after signing two years ago to an 11-year, $280 million contract. However, his did struggle this season, hitting .264/.307/.381 and missing several weeks with a fractured shoulder.
“We’ll talk to him about (Bogaerts’ defensive position), but yeah, if we’re going to be a playoff team next year, my guess is … Xander has an All-Star-type season, and I feel very confident he’s capable of doing that,” Preller said. “Part of it was the injury, but I think he’s going to look at this year and make some adjustments to make sure that he comes back next year and he’s back as one of the top players in the game.”
