Haven't you heard? I heard it, but it's decided. Dodgers' roster Kim Hye-sung is likely to be eliminated from Tokyo Open Game, and secret notice to competitors

Mar 11, 2025

'I don't have to talk to the eliminated.'

Kim Hye-sung (26), who is aiming to enter the 2025 Major League roster as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers, is unlikely to make it to the opening series in Tokyo. The position competitor heard about Kim Hye-sung's trip to Japan, which he did not hear. There is only one thing that this means. In the end, it looks like he will start the season in the minor leagues.

The Dodgers made a cold judgment. Kim Hye-sung, who showed a serious weakness in hitting in the exhibition game, is considered too much to use in the big league right now. For this reason, he intends to send him to the Minor League so that he has time to modify his batting form and adapt more to the pitches of U.S. pitchers.

This situation is evidenced by the fact that James Outman (28), who competed for position during the spring camp-demonstration game with Kim Hye-sung, went to Tokyo. Outman was competing with Kim Hye-sung and Miguel Rojas for the utility player position in the exhibition game. One or two of the three are expected to be in the final 26 entries for the opening round.

However, among them, Outman was the first to be notified of his entry into the opening entry. I was told that he was part of the team going to Tokyo.

Fabian Ardaya, a Dodgers reporter for The Athletic in the U.S., said. On the 11th (Korea time), he wrote on his SNS, `Outman said he was told that he would be included in the Dodgers' opening entry to Japan.'

It's a shocking content. If true, it means that the Dodgers leaders have already decided on the team's utility entry, which means Kim Hye-sung will start the 2025 season in the minor leagues.

Kim Hye-sung wore a Dodgers uniform for three years-12.5 million dollars (about 18.4 billion won) through a posting in January. It was predicted that he would have to go through the main competition immediately after joining the team.

Not only the second base, which was the original position, but also the shortstop and the outfielder had to show good performance. It was evaluated that defense and baserunning ability work in the Major League as well.

The problem was the hit. Even in the KBO League, he wasn't such an outstanding hitter in terms of hitting. In particular, there was a big difference in slugging power compared to Kim Ha-sung (Tampa Bay) and Lee Jung-hoo (San Francisco), who left for the Major League first. This was pointed out as a weakness, but in the end, it failed to overcome this problem.

As soon as Kim Hye-sung entered the spring camp, he was instructed by the Dodgers coaching staff to 'complete revision of the hitting form'. This is because it was judged that the existing batting form could not target Major League pitchers' fastballs and sharp breaking balls.

However, it is almost impossible to change the batting form in a short time. Kim Hye-sung had no choice but to continue to suffer trial and error in the exhibition game. The batting average was hardly out of the 10% range. Even in the highly anticipated defense, he did not perform very impressively. He often made mistakes, too.

In the end, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts seems to have made a decision. It is revealed that Kim Hye-sung will not be taken to the opening two consecutive games against the Chicago Cubs, which will be held at Tokyo Dome in Japan from the 18th. This is revealed by the fact that the position competitor, Outman, was notified of his trip to Tokyo, but Kim Hye-sung did not hear it.

It is common sense to notify players collectively when informing them about the team's schedule. If someone heard it, and someone didn't, it's because they move to different schedules. In other words, Outman is included in the squad for Tokyo, and Kim Hye-sung will remain in the U.S. for a minor league schedule.

This article was translated by Naver AI translator.