Is Ha-Seong Kim the Perfect Man to Fill the Void Willy Adames Leaves?

At this point, most Brewers fans have resigned themselves to the loss of Willy Adames for 2025 and beyond, leaving a gaping hole in their lineup and their infield. Oliver Dunn has an intriguing ceiling, but hasn’t quite established the requisite quality of contact at the majors to be successful, while Brock Wilken, Mike Boeve and Cooper Pratt are at least a year from being ready for the major-league team.

There’s a hole to be filled, and in Ha-Seong Kim, the Brewers may have an ideal, budget-friendly target to fill that hole. At the moment, Kim has a mutual option for $8 million that he's expected to turn down. He also underwent season-ending shoulder surgery to fix a small tear in his labrum. He won’t be taking part in the Padres’ postseason run, but his value to the franchise over his four years has been well above the $7-million AAV his contract was worth. Kim has recently changed representation to the Boras Corporation, further signifying his intention to hit free agency this offseason.

First of all, the Brewers' model demands strong defense on their infield, as a way of elevating the floor of the player even should the bat slump. Where Adames’s glove slumped last season, that’s far less likely to happen with Kim, who has both the speed and smooth actions to continue being a positive defender all around the infield. Over his four years, he’s recorded 24 Defensive Runs Saved at shortstop, 9 at third base and 15 at second base. That's an average of 12 DRS per season, with positive metrics for Ultimate Zone Rating, Outs Above Average and Fielding Run Value for each position as well. He’s a universally acclaimed defender with great range and a strong arm, who can make plays like this on a regular basis:

Kim is also fast, with strong instincts on the basepaths. In a full season of plate appearances in 2023, he stole 38 bases, adding a further 22 swipes in 2024 despite some time on the injured list. The speed helps him both defensively and on the basepaths, but it’s his bat that’s really intriguing.

Kim isn’t a slugger. He doesn’t hit the ball hard with regularity. However, he has the ability to turn on the ball to the pull side. Since 2023, he’s hit 28 home runs in 1,000 plate appearances, a more than acceptable number, but to focus on that would be a detriment to everything else Kim brings to the plate:

The average exit velocity and hard-hit rates are going to stay, but the swathe of red at the bottom of the graphic above are fascinating. The plate discipline and knowledge of the strike zone, plus the ability to find ideal launch angles into the outfield, is a very strong combination. It provides a good floor for him at the plate. This bears out, with each of his last three seasons featuring a wRC+ north of 100.

The home run production may tick up a little, as well, should Kim come to Milwaukee. Petco Park has a bigger left field than American Family Field, to the point that had all his games been played in Milwaukee this season, he’d have stroked 15 home runs in just 400 plate appearances. As you can see, this power is very much of the Isaac Paredes mold: pull, pull, and pull some more:

He may not hit the ball hard with regularity, but Kim’s best ability is his baseball nous. He knows his swing, knows the strike zone, knows how to run the bases and knows his defensive roles, to the point where he can excel at all four elements of the game. He’s exactly the type of player the Brewers could use to fill their third base gap.

Over a full season, Kim is a 3-3.5 WAR player, but the shoulder surgery and lower playing time this year may have dented his market value somewhat. Someone may far outbid the field and offer a three- or four-year deal for him, but the likelihood is that Kim will be offered around $12 million in AAV. The Brewers have a lot of very talented depth in their system, but they could do with a solid big-league regular over the next two years. 

Kim could very easily fill that hole, and within a shorter pull-side park, get a full year under his belt after the injury to set himself up for a longer contract in 2026. The Brewers may be the perfect place to do so, with a two-year, $25-28 million deal featuring a player option.

Kim screams “Brewer,” when you see how he plays baseball. He avoids strikeouts, draws walks, has sneaky power, runs the bases incredibly well and plays genuinely elite defense. If he gains a clean bill of health after his shoulder repair, the Brewers should pounce.

Can you see Kim on the 2025 iteration of this team? Would you pick him up on this deal? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!