The one thing that would have make the Atlanta Braves' lives infinitely easier this offseason would be to have Ha-Seong Kim opt into the last year of his contract. While seen as an unlikely outcome, Kim deciding to wait until next offseason to rebuild his value even more after his litany of injuries wasn't completely outlandish and it would have kept the Braves from having to navigate was is a dreadful market for shortstops this offseason.
However, the fact remains that Kim and his agent, Scott Boras, have to know that they can beat his current contract on the open market given his previous production and the dearth of competent shortstops available this offseason. That likely outcome proved to be the Braves' reality as it was revealed on Monday that Kim has indeed opted out of his contract with Atlanta and is now a free agent.
Breaking: Ha-Seong Kim has opted out
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) November 3, 2025
After Ha-Seong Kim made his opt out official, the Braves' next steps are critical
It isn't particularly surprising, although deciding so quickly in the window to make that decision probably isn't great news for the Braves. Unfortunately, the allure of free agent dollars is significant and for a guy at Kim's age, getting as much guaranteed money as possible makes a lot of sense which is probably exactly why he hired Boras in the first place.
The good news for the Braves here is that they have an exclusive negotiating window with Kim until five days after the end of the World Series, so they have a few days to agree to terms on a new deal before the rest of the league comes calling. There is certainly a number where signing Kim does not make sense, but the Braves have to be motivated to put their best foot forward right now to get this deal done as the alternatives, including the toothpick-swinging Nick Allen, are grim.
However, even that feels like like a slim hope. There are a number of teams that need shortstop upgrades and other than Bo Bichette, who probably shouldn't play shortstop, there are just not good options available and Atlanta hates to overpay based on need. If the Braves fail to keep Kim, one hopes that they can pivot perhaps to some intriguing options on the trade market quickly. We can all agree that repeating the mistake of 2025 at short simply can't happen.