TAMPA -- Shortstop Ha-Seong Kim is not yet back with the Rays, but he’s going to be around the team a lot more this week.
And that could be good news for Tampa Bay.
Kim fielded ground balls at shortstop during pregame defensive drills and took batting practice with the Rays on Monday afternoon ahead of their 4-3 series-opening loss to the Astros at George M. Steinbrenner Field.
Manager Kevin Cash described this as a “big week” for the rehabbing 29-year-old Kim, who has been out all season after undergoing right shoulder surgery last year. If all goes well, he could get some at-bats in the Rookie-level Florida Complex League “at the end of the week,” Cash said, before potentially heading to a higher-level affiliate for a Minor League rehab assignment.
Considering the time Kim has missed -- he sustained the injury last August -- he will need plenty of work in the field and a decent number of at-bats before he’s deemed ready for Major League action. But Kim’s throws across the infield looked noticeably more firm and direct during Monday’s workout, and he’s been hitting since he joined the Rays in Spring Training.
The Rays signed Kim in February to a two-year, $29 million contract with an additional $2 million available in incentives this year and a player option for the 2026 season. If he returns to form, Kim could provide Gold Glove-caliber defense with MLB-average (or better) offensive production.
Shortstop Taylor Walls has taken his elite defense to another level this season, with an MLB-leading 12 defensive runs saved, although he entered Monday slashing just .198/.289/.243.
There was some more good news from Cash on the injury front Monday.
Rookie speedster Chandler Simpson (sore right hand) wasn’t in the lineup, but declared himself available off the bench and wound up stealing two bases after entering the series opener in the seventh inning as a pinch-runner. Simpson sat out Sunday’s series finale in Miami following a painful slide home in Saturday’s game, but he said he felt much improved after taking Sunday off and noted he won’t change the all-out approach on the basepaths that got him to this point.
“It’s going to be 110 percent now,” he said with a grin before the game, “so I can be safe at the plate.”
Additionally, reliever Kevin Kelly (left gluteal strain) and outfielder Jake Mangum (left groin strain) are set to join the FCL Rays to begin a rehab assignment on Tuesday before heading to Triple-A Durham on Thursday. Reliever Hunter Bigge (right lat strain) won’t be far behind those two, as he’ll possibly join Durham on Friday after throwing a bullpen session on Tuesday.
“Good sign for us,” Cash said.