2 dream Winter Meetings free agency signings for Angels fans

Ha-Seong Kim

This would be a great addition for the Angels for multiple reasons. First off, he is coming off a labrum surgery so he might opt for a one year, prove it deal rather than a 2-3 year guaranteed deal with a high AAV. If the Angels snag Kim, they could potentially extract an inordinate amount value on a short-term contract. Over the past two seasons for this year's position player free agent class, Kim's 6.9 fWAR only trails Soto's 14.2, Alex Bregman's 8.6, and Willy Adames' 8.0. A get-right year for Kim on his next team would give that club an extra leg-up in his sweepstakes the following offseason. If his labrum surgery drastically affects his above-average arm strength, then the Angels could move off of him after a 1 year experiment.

Kim is a utility-man extraordinaire. With Zach Neto's injury potentially sidelining him for the beginning of the season and massive third base concerns that have persisted over multiple years, Kim's ability to provide top-tier defense all over the infield would pay dividends. Last season with the Padres, Kim solely played shortstop on a roster that has Xander Bogaerts and Fernando Tatís Jr. He won the Gold Glove for utility players in 2023, as he scattered around short, third, and second. Kim is essentially Kevin Newman, but has a higher offensive and defensive floor and ceiling.

Like Minasian has said about Kikuchi, signing Kim would help the rest of the roster slot into a more realistic role. Newman would not have to play every day, Scott Kingery would not be a vital cog in the engine as he low-key is right now, Luis Rengifo could focus primarily on his better position of second base, Christian Moore could continue to develop at the minor league level, and Anthony Rendon could be purged from the roster so the team no longer has to cling to some notion that he will salvage his Angels tenure.