When Hyeseong Kim was sent to Triple-A at this time last season, it was possible to believe it wasn’t cause for alarm. This time around, we have to look at the situation more critically.

On Sunday, the Los Angeles Dodgers announced that Kim had been optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City, effectively handing the starting second base job to 22-year-old top prospect Alex Freeland, who will make his major league debut this year. The move showed that a third of the way into his three-year, $12.5 million contract, Kim is fighting to stay relevant in the Dodgers’ plans.

There’s no faulting the Dodgers, who have far more spending power than any of their peers, for taking a relatively low-cost flier on Kim last winter. But in other organizations, Kim would have been prioritized. Even though he got a World Series ring out of year one in LA, he would have frankly been better served signing in a lot of those other places.

Coming out of the Korean Baseball Organization, Kim was touted for his elite speed and defensive versatility, but there were some question marks about how his swing would translate to facing major league pitching. It’s awfully hard to fix an issue, however, when you barely get the chance to address it.

Kim got into 71 major league games for the Dodgers last year and acquitted himself rather well. He posted a .699 OPS, three home runs, 13 stolen bases, and 1.7 bWAR. He didn’t yet look like an All-Star, but in almost any other situation, a rookie who was already showing that sort of aptitude for racking up WAR would at least get a prominent supporting role in his second year.

Without knowing the full scope of offers Kim had available during free agency last year, we can’t fully condemn his decision. Perhaps the Dodgers offered the most money by a solid margin and Kim felt like he couldn’t say no. Joining a team with championship expectations often comes with the expectation that one will actually earn playing time.

If Kim was betting on himself at the time, however, it’s time to admit the bet backfired. Talented as he was, he needed to find a club that would allow him the runway to develop at the major league level. The Dodgers failed him in that regard — yet, as we’ve established, there’s no reason to blame the Dodgers for stockpiling talent when it falls into their laps.

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