Kim Ha-seong not tendered qualifying offer by Braves

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, Nov. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korean infielder Kim Ha-seong has not received a qualifying offer from the Atlanta Braves after an injury-plagued season.

Eight players received the one-year qualifying offer worth US$23.15 million, the mean salary of the 125 highest-paid players in Major League Baseball (MLB), on Monday (U.S. local time).

Kim played this season on a one-year, $20 million deal but batted just .116 with zero home runs and nine RBIs in 51 games.

He missed the early part of the season after suffering a finger injury in January while in South Korea -- he slipped on ice and fell, tearing a tendon in his right middle finger -- and never found his rhythm at the plate. He made his season debut on May 12 but then missed about a month, from early July to early August, with inflammation in his surgically repaired finger. He batted just 1-for-28 in June.

After four seasons with the San Diego Padres from 2021 to 2024, Kim joined the Tampa Bay Rays in early 2025 as a free agent. He only played in 24 games for the Rays after returning from shoulder surgery he had undergone the previous winter, and then the Braves selected him off waivers in September 2025.

Kim batted .253 with three homers and 12 RBIs in his 24-game audition for the Braves, who brought him back on that one-year contract to be their primary shortstop for 2026.

Those plans went awry even before the season began as Kim suffered his finger injury, and it remains to be seen if any other club will go after the 31-year-old who has been slowed by injuries the past two seasons.

Players who have received a qualifying offer have until 4 p.m. (Eastern Time) on Nov. 17 to accept it. Those who do so are signed with that team for the 2027 season at the designated value. Players who reject this offer remain free agents, and if they sign with a new team, then their previous club receives a draft pick as compensation.

Since the system was implemented in 2012, only 18 players to receive a qualifying offer have accepted it. It is a way for players to bet on themselves to have one more productive season to further increase their value before exploring the open market.

Former South Korean big leaguer Ryu Hyun-jin accepted the qualifying offer from the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2018, and it worked out well for the left-hander. In 2019, Ryu led MLB with a 2.32 ERA and started the All-Star Game while also finishing second in the National League Cy Young Award voting. Ryu parlayed that into a four-year, $80 million contract in free agency with the Toronto Blue Jays.

jeeho@yna.co.kr
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