Shock! I don't need expensive medicinal herbs Kim Ha-sung, who was shunned by the Yankees, was a natural conclusion to sign a trade with Caballero

Aug 01, 2025

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The New York Yankees eventually turned a blind eye to Kim Ha-sung. The Yankees, seeking the postseason, signed Jose Caballero from the Tampa Bay Rays ahead of the closing of the transfer window.

Defensive ability, steal ability, physical durability, and above all, crazy cost-effectiveness produced this result. Kim Ha-sung was also considered as a target for recruitment, but in the end, he failed to surpass Caballero in every way.

The Yankees sent Everson Pereira, a Triple-A outfielder, on the 1st (Korea time) and acquired Caballero from Tampa Bay in a trade. It was decided during the match between the two teams.

MLB.COM, the official website of Major League Baseball, reported the trade that took place during the game, saying, `Cabayero started the game in one dugout, but finished the game on the other side.' The Yankees and Tampa Bay have played four consecutive games since July 29 at Yankee Stadium in New York, the home of the Yankees.

The trade took place on the last day of the four consecutive games. On this day, the Yankees beat Tampa Bay 7-4 to win three consecutive games to maintain the top spot in the American League wild card. On the other hand, Tampa Bay has lost three consecutive games, making it even slimmer to advance to the postseason. U.S. FanGraphs reported a 9.9% chance of Tampa Bay's advance to the postseason after the loss. The Yankees have a whopping 92.5% chance of advancing.

In the end, the Yankees brought Caballero to secure postseason competitiveness, and Tampa Bay, which was virtually frustrated to advance to the postseason, switched to a 'sell' position and sent Caballero.

However, the trade is quite shocking to Korean fans. This is because Kim Ha-sung was one of the leading candidates until the trade decision was made.

The New York Post reported on July 29 that the Yankees are negotiating a trade deal with Tampa Bay. He is paying attention to three infielders, including Kim Ha-sung, Jose Caballero, and Taylor Walls, according to the report. The reason why the Yankees started discussing trade with Tampa Bay was that Anthony Wolfie, the main shortstop, was very sluggish in a situation where he is likely to advance to the postseason.

Until now, Volpi had a season batting average of 0.213 (80 hits in 375 at-bats) with 14 homers and 55 RBIs. In terms of offense, there was nothing to put forward except a double-digit home run. Above all, the sense of stability was greatly reduced in defense. OAA (out contribution compared to average) was only -3 this year due to the loss of confidence in both catch and throw.

As a result, the Yankees are playing cards with Tampa Bay, which was pushed out of the fall competition to remove anxiety from the postseason stage.

Just in time, Tampa Bay had abundant infield resources. It is a team that has Caballero and Taylor Walls, starting with Kim Ha-sung, who has already been recognized for his special defense by winning the 2023 National League's Gold Glove in the utility category. When the trade discussions just began, Kim Ha-sung was a pretty strong candidate. Kim Ha-sung's name was even mentioned first in the New York Post article.

If the Yankees chose Kim Ha-sung, Kim Ha-sung was likely to play in the postseason again in three years after 2022 when he was with the San Diego Padres.

However, the Yankees' choice was Caballero, not Kim Ha-sung.

The reason is clear. Caballero has overwhelming steal ability and stable defense ability, and the ransom is overwhelmingly cheaper than Kim Ha-sung, so it has a "crazy cost-effectiveness". Above all, it surpasses Kim Ha-sung in terms of body durability, in other words 'health'. Kim Ha-sung is in a situation where there is a defect in the 'body durability' category.

Caballero has the best steal ability in the major leagues. In 2024, he ranked first in stolen bases in the American League (44) and succeeded in 31 steals, the most in MLB, in the first 75 games of this season.

Prior to the transfer, he played in 86 games and had a batting average of 0.226 (53 hits in 235 at-bats) and an OPS of 0.638 while running for the first place (joint) in MLB with 34 stolen bases. Caballero's ability to steal is new in that the number of stolen bases is the same even though he lacks 11 games and 116 at-bats compared to O'Neill Cruz (Pittsburg), who is tied for first place.

In particular, he is evaluated as a gold glove level. Above all, it has the strength of being able to digest internal and external positions. This year, he played all three outfield positions in Tampa Bay, following the infield position except for the first base. He is a defender who plays his part in any position because he has a wide range of defense with strong shoulders and fast feet.

From the Yankees manager Aaron Boone's point of view, he has the best utility agent who can use it at any time. Coach Boone said in an MLB.COM, `I think Caballero can bring a lot of strengths to the team. I think it will be a very useful player for us. In particular, he is a very hard-working, tough player. I'm looking forward to bringing him to the team"I was delighted.

In the end, manager Boone's feelings reveal why the Yankees chose Caballero rather than Kim Ha-sung.

Kim Ha-sung is no longer being evaluated as a 'tough player'. Although he was once considered a preliminary FA worth $100 million as a 2023 Gold Glove winner, it has already become a thing of the past. Now, they are treated as `less durable players after shoulder surgery.'

In particular, Kim Ha-sung, who returned on July 5 after rehabilitating his shoulder, suffered injuries in different parts twice before entering the injured list (IL) as of the 26th. On the day of the return match, he had to take four days off due to pain in his right calf while stealing third base. At this time, he avoided listing on the IL. However, he had back pain while stealing second base against the Chicago White Sox on July 22.

This time, he couldn't avoid going to the IL. The Tampa Bay club listed Kim Ha-sung on the 10-day IL as of the 26th. It will be applied retroactively as of the 23rd and can be returned as early as the 2nd.

The fact that Kim Ha-sung, who returned to the MLB stage 11 months after shoulder surgery, continues to suffer injuries is evidence that his "body durability" has rapidly deteriorated. This is a serious reason for disqualification for the Yankees, who are looking for players who need to be put into the game right away.

Above all, the fact that Kim Ha-sung's annual salary, which is weak in durability, is a whopping $13 million (about KRW 18.2 billion) was also an obstacle. This is the highest annual salary in the Tampa Bay team this year. In addition, an annual salary of $16 million is basically guaranteed next year.

On the other hand, Caballero's annual salary this season is only 776,800 dollars (about 1.09 billion won). It is only 6% of Kim Ha-sung's annual salary.

In this way, you don't even need to knock on the calculator. In a nutshell, it's a crazy cost-effectiveness. Kim Ha-sung's salary is less than one-tenth of that, but his body is healthier, his steal ability is 'Number Four Walls', and he can even play not only infield but also outfield positions. Caballero's choice by the Yankees was a fixed ending from the beginning. It's a cold reality.

This article was translated by Naver AI translator.