Detroit Tigers Will Regret Not Signing Gold Glove Infield Solution This Offseason

The Detroit Tigers may end up wishing they had signed a cheaper third base solution when he was still available.

Jul 26, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; San Diego Padres shortstop Ha-Seong Kim (7) fields a eighth inning ground ball against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. | Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

The Detroit Tigers are staring down the barrel of some serious issues in the infield this season after things didn't quite break their way this winter.

Shoring up the right side of the infield by acquiring Gleyber Torres to play second base and moving Colt Keith over to first to replace Spencer Torkelson, there's not much question as to what the plan is there.

The left side, however, is another discussion.

With Javier Báez and Trey Sweeney likely set to platoon at shortstop, it's not a great situation there. As for third base, the Tigers had urgency to make a move there, finishing second in the sweepstakes for Alex Bregman despite a very competitive six-year offer.

The hot corner is likely now set to be manned by Matt Vierling with Jace Jung getting some run as well.

There was a free agent linked to Detroit who would have been a perfect fit to potentially solve numerous issues both on defense and in the lineup, but Ha-Seong Kim ended up signing a two-year deal with the Tampa Bay Rays worth $29 million.

That took place before their chase for Bregman came to a close, but perhaps they should have simply narrowed in on Kim early and settled there.

He is an elite defender at any position he plays in the infield, being named a Gold Glover in 2023 with the San Diego Padres at the utility position. A natural shortstop with the ability to play both second and third at a high level, signing Kim would have raised the overall level of defense in the infield immensely.

In all likelihood, he would have been brought in to play third base but moved to short as needed.

On top of his superb defense, Kim had the potential to be the right-handed addition to the lineup who would have fit like a glove into what the Tigers want to do.

With elite numbers in terms of chase rate, walk rate, swing and miss rate, and on-base percentages, his plate discipline is among the best in baseball with a respectable level of power as well.

Understandably, it seems Detroit felt pretty confident they were going to land Bregman throughout the process, and that's why they didn't seriously pursue Kim.

It's unfortunate the way things worked out for the Tigers since they will now have to hope third base is not what keeps them from a trip back to the postseason.