Dodgers' spring training position battle for second base has 2 clear solutions

Tommy Edman's ankle injury, and the Dodgers' confirmation that he would not be ready by Opening Day (which fans already knew well before they made it official), has presented the opportunity for what's become a rarity at Dodgers spring training in the past few years: a real, bonafide position battle.

Second base is, for the moment, not promised to any one player, and there are two that could plausibly be in the mix.

Miguel Rojas is guaranteed $5.5 million and a spot on the Opening Day roster this year, but the question is who will platoon or potentially even supersede him to become the Dodgers' everyday second baseman while Edman is on the shelf.

Hyeseong Kim and top prospect Alex Freeland are the two most obvious candidates, though the newly-signed Santiago Espinal has a very distant shot at factoring in. Ahead of the team's first full-squad workout, Dave Roberts said that Kim and Freeland were essentially fighting for the same spot on the 26-man roster.

So one of either Kim or Freeland ends up in the minors to start the season, depending on spring training performance. If it's Freeland, no harm, no foul. He's still very young and isn't making a guaranteed major league salary. But if it's Kim ... the Dodgers might finally need to bite the bullet and trade him.

Dodgers' spring training battle for second base might finally force their hand on a Hyeseong Kim trade

The Dodgers have clearly never quite known what to do with Kim. Shohei Ohtani reportedly encouraged the team to sign him, and maybe they capitulated before they could actually figure out how to use him.

Kim's contract is pretty negligible when compared to the rest of the Dodgers' payroll, but that could him even more of a tempting trade option. A buying team would be getting a versatile defender and a contact-first hitter with a lot of professional experience, even if it's not in MLB.

It's far more likely that the Dodgers keep Kim in reserve in the minors if he doesn't make the Opening Day roster, and then swap him out with Freeland if the top prospect doesn't end up working out. Kim still has two minor league options remaining, so there's no real harm in it, but it would also be fairer to Kim if they just let him go somewhere he actually has a real chance at playing everyday.

Maybe we're getting ahead of ourselves, though. There's a battle brewing for second base, and there's a lot on the line for both of these players, but Kim especially. Now's the perfect opportunity for him to make an impact.