Scott Boras Hints at What Ha-Seong Kim Likes About Braves

The Atlanta Braves and Ha-Seong Kim have mutual admiration for each other, and his agent gave some insight into why that is on Kim's end

The Braves provided a good experience for Ha-Seong Kim | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Winter Meetings provide a key time to garner insight into where teams stand and how players look at the height of the offseason. The Atlanta Braves still desire a shortstop, and Ha-Seong Kim is still on the market.

It's already out there that he likes the team, and they like him. His agent, Scott Boras, took the opportunity to open up as to why that is.

Did he reveal the Braves' prospects of landing him when providing insight? Of course not. Let alone were those cards close to his chest, they were arguably locked away, so they can't even be accidentally dealt. That being said, he provided insight into what Kim enjoyed about his brief time in Atlanta.

"I just think he got there, and he was healthy, you know?" Boras said. "He got to let it go and play."

Kim certainly had a night-and-day performance compared to the limited action he saw with the Rays. In 24 games, he batted .253 with a .684 OPS, three home runs and 12 RBIs. Both of the counting totals were more than what he had with Tampa Bay. Before he went hitless over the final series of the season, Kim was batting .289 with a .770 OPS. His performance was stronger than the overall numbers suggest.

So, he had the chance to better let loose at the plate, and the result was production the Braves hadn't seen from a shortstop all season until that point. However, it goes a bit deeper than that, at least in Boras' eyes. He pinpointed the new manager, Walt Weiss, as a key reason as well.

"Walt Weiss is a really good infield coach," he added. "And I think that anybody who enjoys defense would enjoy Walt."

Perhaps that hints at the Braves making a certain selection of manager helps their chances. It doesn't guarantee the Braves are frontrunners or have a strong shot. However, Boras made sure to go out of his way to compliment Weiss. He could have kept it simple with the health comment.

Weiss would likely love to have Kim in the lineup for his first season as well. Having that two-way option would be ideal. At this time, he has also made it clear that, if all else doesn't pan out, he is comfortable with Mauricio Dubon taking over shortstop, if they can't land someone else.

"He protects us in a variety of ways because he can play all over the field, and it's plus defense everywhere he goes, but he can play shortstop," Weiss said on Tuesday at the Winter Meetings. "And as we're sitting here today, he's running out to shortstop."

Boras added that his time in Atlanta was evidence that Kim has a clean bill of health now. Along with the options on the market, or lack thereof, he feels nobody is to Kim's caliber this winter. This all helps his chances of landing himself in a good spot by the end of the offseason.

What remains to be seen is if the Braves will take the chance on a Boras client. It just hasn't been their standard operating procedure. It's not just considered a barrier for signing Kim, but multiple free agents on the market, especially when it comes to starting pitching options.

So, there is interest in making this partnership continue. However, it's up to the Braves to decide if this interest is enough to make them go for it.