Dodgers need to relax on infield pursuit and give underappreciated player a chance

Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and owner Mark Walter basically admitted that LA's front office has carte blanche with the Guggenheim Group's money. Friedman said at the Winter Meetings, "We're in a really strong position right now, financially," and Walter added, "[The front office] makes all the decisions. I just tell them yes."

The Dodgers could afford to sign Kyle Tucker to the $400 million deal he wants (but probably won't get), if it weren't for their concerns about their aging roster. They signed Edwin Díaz because they could. Anyone else would've had to ride with Tanner Scott through the rest of his four-year deal.

So the Dodgers, excessive as they are, don't seem to be ruling out adding an infield bat when what they actually need on paper is an outfield bat. Their interest in the Cardinals' Brendan Donovan — a utility man but primarily a second baseman — is evidence of that. Donovan will take a significant prospect haul, but what else is LA's farm system for if not to be used in trades like that?

But just because the Dodgers can, doesn't mean that they necessarily should. Why trade for Donovan when they already have Hyeseong Kim at home?

Dodgers need to give Hyeseong Kim a real chance in 2026 instead of getting an unnecessary infielder

Fans are befuddled by the Dodgers' lack of enthusiasm for Kim. They started him in Triple-A and didn't call him up until early May this year. That was fair enough — he didn't seem to be adjusting very well during spring training — but he was still a pretty rare presence in LA's starting lineups throughout the rest of the year, and didn't start at all in the postseason.

Kim is a second baseman, center fielder, and shortstop but also spent time at third and the outfield corners in the KBO. The Dodgers knew that they weren't going to get a power hitter when they signed him, but Kim at the bottom of the lineup instead of the likes of Miguel Rojas immediately gave Shohei Ohtani more RBI opportunities when the lineup turned over.

Kim could very well be traded if the Dodgers end up getting Donovan or Steven Kwan (and to a team that might actually use him), but why discount him after just one season when they didn't even give him a fair shake?

Keep Kim, move Tommy Edman to center, let Kim and Rojas platoon at second if you're still not totally sold on the former. It would save time, prospects, and give Kim the opportunity he deserves. The guy hit .280 and stole 13 bags in 71 games. You can't tell us he isn't an asset.