Padres blog offers Blue Jays trade package for Ha-Seong Kim. Would it work?

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In a recent post from FanSided's San Diego Padres blog, it was suggested that the Toronto Blue Jays could offer up a competitive trade package for utility infielder Ha-Seong Kim. The deal would go as follows:

Jays Padres

Would such a trade work for the Jays? After all, they have lost star third baseman Matt Chapman to free agency this offseason, leaving a huge gaping hole in their infield to fill. More worrisome was the fact that GM Ross Atkins recently indicated that they are comfortable in going ahead with a committee approach with Cavan Biggio, Santiago Espinal and Isiah Kiner-Falefa all sharing the duties at the hot corner. Just on paper, that appears to be a huge downgrade from what Chapman provided to the team the past two seasons. On top of that, whoever doesn’t end up starting at third will likely get their fair share of starts at second base, where Schneider may also be added to the rotation.

Which brings us back to the proposed trade for Kim. So in comparison, will he be that much better than the committee mentioned above?

Looking at what Kim can provide the Jays

Ever since joining the Padres three years ago, Kim has progressively gotten better statistically with each season. In 2023, he put together his best season yet by hitting a solid .260 and .351 OBP, with 84 runs scored, 17 home runs, 60 RBI and a whopping 38 stolen bases. Moreover, he has the knack of being able to get on base frequently and make things happen, ultimately mesmerizing the opposition with both his bat and speed. In addition, Kim isn’t too shabby from the defensive side of things as with his lightning glove, he registered 16 DRS along with a .988 fielding percentage en route to his first ever Gold Glove last year. So in a way, the Jays would be getting a Chapman-lite, with a better batting average and plus speed.

More importantly, Kim can also give the Jays flexibility as he is capable of playing multiple infield positions, which includes shortstop, second base, and third base. In particular, he is strongest statistically as a second baseman and third baseman, which are the two positions that are currently still in flux for the Jays heading into the 2024 season. To top it off, Kim’s strong 2023 season was better than any of Biggio’s, Espinal’s and Kiner-Falefa’s best seasons to date. As a result, Kim appears to be an ideal fit for the ballclub, if the price is right.

Looking at what the Jays would lose out on in their three young players

But the question remains, is Kim worth three promising young Jays players? Starting with Schneider, everyone remembers the huge offensive boost he gave to the Jays down the stretch in 2023. Although he slowed down somewhat by the end of the season, he still amassed an impressive .276 average, 1.008 OPS, 175 OPS+, with 23 runs scored, 8 home runs and 20 RBI in just 35 games played in his MLB debut season. Schneider looks to be a strong competitor for the starting second base position for the Jays in 2024.

For Alan Roden, he has been one of the fastest rising prospects in the Jays system this past season when he put together a strong year across two minor league levels. He hit a stellar .317 with an .890 OPS, along with 92 runs scored, 10 home runs, 68 RBI and 24 stolen bases. More impressively, he displayed great plate discipline by maintaining a 1:1 walk-to-strikeout ratio, which he has done quite successfully throughout his baseball career thus far. At the same time, he committed only two errors all year, while registering 6 outfield assists in his solid defensive game. As the top outfield prospect and currently ranked 7th in the organization according to MLB Pipeline, he appears on track to make his major league debut soon in the coming year or two.

Finally, there’s the Jays’ top ranked positional prospect and number two in the organization in Orelvis Martinez. Despite having an atrocious start to the 2023 year, Martinez quickly turned things around by making the necessary adjustments to get back on track. In doing so, he put together a solid season in the minors that saw him promoted to Triple-A by the end of the season. In 2023, he posted a .243 average, .835 OPS, along with 70 runs scored, 28 home runs and 94 RBI between Buffalo and New Hampshire. More significantly, he is about ready to make the big leap to the big leagues in the not-so-distant future

The Verdict

To give up all three players that have displayed tremendous potential in the past season, it certainly appears to be a huge overpay on the Jays part if they were indeed interested in acquiring the services of Kim.

First of all, Martinez’s MLB-ready bat and power alone is unmatched by Kim. Secondly, just looking at Roden’s numbers, they closely mirror Kim’s offensive output this past season. Obviously you can’t compare someone in the minors with someone in the majors, but with Roden already displaying a great plate approach consistently at such a young age, his ceiling certainly looks to be a lot higher than Kim, who probably has reached it already. Finally, to add in someone with untapped power potential that was also already a Jays’ fan favourite in Schneider as well would sure peeve the Jays’ faithful. So in summary, that is the Jays’ second and seventh-ranked prospect, along with a power-hitting fan favourite for one season of a reliable and solid Kim. That for sure is asking for way, way too much. Honestly, the Jays would be better off to give playing time to them instead and see what they can produce in the majors with the ballclub.

So for our final thoughts to the trade proposal, it’s best if it is kept in the garbage bin and away from the Jays as far as possible.

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