*This is a prediction*
Despite not having a great 2025 campaign, Ha-Seong Kim should absolutely find himself a role in 2026. Although that may not be as a locked-in starter, here’s why the Seattle Mariners would be a great spot for Kim.
Early on in the free agency period, we talked about the Milwaukee Brewers as a possible landing spot, and that could still be a good one. With that being said, the Mariners could work as well.
2025 was a really strong year for the Mariners overall as they won 90 games. However, after losing to the Toronto Blue Jays in a 4-3 series, it’s time for them to make some moves.
Going after Kim wouldn’t be the biggest move on the market, but it would be a really good fit with a ton of upside.
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The reason that we say signing Kim has a ton of upside is because of what he did in 2023. Here’s a quick breakdown on Kim from that Brewers article.
“In 2023, Kim was a Gold Glove winner, and he finished 14th in the NL MVP Voting. That year, Kim had a 5.4 WAR, 17 home runs, and a 0.260 batting average…There’s no guarantee that Kim is going to be able to get back to that form. Kim was 27 years old that season, and now he’s 30. On the flip side, there aren’t a ton of other players who offer similar upside”
While true, it’s not as if Kim was unplayable in 2025. Last year, it was a small sample size, but Kim had 0.3 WAR, five home runs, a .234 batting average, and a .304 OBP.
Going even further than that, Kim had a -3 Batting Run Value, zero Baserunning Run Value, and -1 Fielding Run Value on Baseball Savant.
How Ha-Seong Kim Fits in Seattle
In terms of how Kim fits with the Mariners, he would be an immediate upgrade off the bench. According to Fangraphs, Leo Rivas is projected to come off the bench.
Rivas is 28 years old and hasn’t done much in his first two MLB seasons. 2025 was Rivas’ best year, and that resulted in 0.8 WAR, two home runs, a .244 batting average, and .387 OBP in 48 games.
Then you look at the Mariners’ starting lineup and Cole Young sticks out at 2nd base. There’s certainly a lot of hope for Young long-term, as he’s only 22 years old right now.
However, Young only had 0.5 WAR, four home runs, a .211 batting average, and .302 OBP in 77 games last year. Of course, the hope that Young improves as a sophomore is what the Mariners are hoping for, but adding Kim would be a solid insurance plan.
Ha-Seong Kim Contract
When trying to evaluate what kind of contract Kim will sign next, here’s what Kiley McDaniel of ESPN projected.
“Projected contract: One-year, $16 million”
In terms of money, that seems realistic, but it wouldn’t be shocking to see Kim sign a two-year deal either. Since Kim is looking to prove it to an MLB team, though, a one-year deal makes a lot of sense.
The thought process here is that the Mariners make sure they’re the highest bidder by being the ones to offer him a two-year deal. All things considered, Ha-Seong Kim to the Seattle Mariners seems like a really strong fit.