Ju-Won Kim might be a name to remember for Philadelphia Phillies fans. The ballclub has been scouting the Korean shortstop and could make a play for him once he’s eligible to be posted.
The Phillies haven’t had much luck in the cross-Pacific market over the course of their history. Aside from the magical Tadahito Iguchi run in 2007, no Asian hitter has ever started regular games in Philadelphia. The last Korean-born player to wear red pinstripes was outfielder Hyun-Soo Kim back in 2017. However, the organization has been making an effort to rectify that deficit in recent years, making a spirited run at Japanese superstar Yoshinobu Yamamoto and reeling in multiple talented Korean and Taiwanese prospects.
Those gains have yet to pay off at the big-league level, as the Phils have signed some high-ceiling youngsters, but nobody has stepped into a role on the Major League roster. Kim may be able to change that in two years’ time.
Ju Won Kim could make a major impact on the Phillies' roster
The 24-year-old Kim has played in the Korean Baseball Organization for six seasons and has posted a .260/.354/.402 slash line across 701 games in the notably hitter-friendly league. However, he stepped things up a notch with an .830 OPS in 2025, and followed that up with another solid .280/.361/.427 campaign this past season, popping 18 homers in the process.
The NC Dinos star is no one-trick pony; he also swiped 30 bags in 131 games this past year and took home the Korea Baseball Organization’s Golden Glove Award as the league's best defensive shortstop. With the incumbent Trea Turner an absolute mess in the field last year, a move to shore up the defense at his position is a long-term necessity.
The three-time All-Star Turner has a lengthy track record of offensive success that should give fans some semblance of confidence that he’ll turn things around next season, but he offers no such comfort with the glove. The 33-year-old has long been a butcher in 2023, 2024, and 2026 at the sport’s most important position, and things have gotten so bad that Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski issued a public ultimatum to Turner last week to improve in the field.
The Phillies are willing to give Turner one more shot as their everyday shortstop in 2027, but they have a solid backup plan in the form of historically great second baseman Bryson Stott. If Turner is deemed unsuitable to handle the position next season, Stott should be able to move over from second base as a short-term Band-Aid.
With Stott slated to reach free agency for the first time next winter, his timeline aligns rather well with Kim’s availability.
It remains to be seen whether the switch-hitting Kim will be posted after the 2027 or 2028 KBO seasons (if at all), but the Phillies and a handful of other MLB clubs are already showing an interest in him.
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