The year he turned 17, he was picked in the first round of the Nexen Heroes’ second-stage rookie draft as a Dongsan High School infielder, and that winter he won the Lee Young-min Batting Award for the top high school hitter. In 2017, he debuted with the KBO first team. In 2018, he started Game 3 of the playoffs and had two hits, including a triple.
In 2019, Kiwoom finished as Korean Series runner-up. Sports Donga wrote that he, Lee Jung-hoo and Song Sung-mun won starting spots that year. In 2020, he hit for the cycle against the KT Wiz, with a home run, triple, double and single.
The breakthrough yearThe year he turned 22, he was picked for the Tokyo Olympics team, his first selection to the senior national team, and in August he became the youngest first-team captain in KBO League history. Late in 2021, he won the KBO stolen base title and the Golden Glove at shortstop, and became known to a wider audience.
In 2022, he moved to second base because of frequent throwing errors. At the end of that year, he also won the Golden Glove at second base, the first player in KBO League history to win Golden Gloves at both shortstop and second base.
In 2023, he was captain of the national baseball team at the Hangzhou Asian Games and won gold with a final win over Taiwan. At the end of that year, he won the second base Golden Glove for a second straight year.
In 2024, after his last KBO season, he applied through the posting system to move to the Major Leagues. At the end of that year, he won the second base Golden Glove for a third straight year, a first in 36 years.
The year he turned 26, he signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers. After going hitless in the last spring game, he started the season in Triple-A, but he came up to the Major Leagues and debuted on May 4, and hit his first home run on May 15. In the fall, he made the postseason roster and appeared as a defensive replacement in World Series Game 7, and the Dodgers won their second straight World Series.
In 2026, he played for the national team at the WBC, which reached the quarterfinals for the first time in 17 years. In the Major Leagues, he was sent back down to Triple-A in late May, and his Triple-A team won the title. Local reports said adding him to the Dodgers’ postseason roster was under consideration.
Hyeseong Kim (born Jan 27, 1999) debuted in the KBO on Jun 28, 2017, the year he turned 18, and became known in 2021, the year he turned 22, when he won the stolen base title and a Golden Glove in the same year. On Jan 4, 2025, the year he turned 26, he signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and in 2025, the year he turned 26, he won a World Series in his first Major League season.
Ages are by calendar year (the year minus the birth year), birthdays aside.
As a Dongsan High School infielder, was taken by the Nexen Heroes in the first round, seventh overall, of the 2017 second-stage rookie draft.
Source 01 · MyDaily (Korean) · Nexen picks him in the second-stage draft, first round · opens in a new tabBatted .489 (46 hits in 94 at-bats) over 27 games in high school weekend leagues, national tournaments and the National Sports Festival, and won the Lee Young-min Batting Award, given to the top high school hitter.
Source 02 · Sports Donga (Korean) · Lee Young-min Batting Award · opens in a new tabCalled up to the first team, he debuted in the KBO League against the NC Dinos at Masan Stadium in Changwon. In his debut season he batted .188 (3 hits in 16 at-bats) in 16 games.
Source 03 · MK Sports (Korean) · Hanwha first-team roster (including Nexen’s Kim Hye-seong call-up) · opens in a new tabSource 04 · Wikipedia (Korean) · Kim Hye-seong (baseball player) · opens in a new tab The June 27 call-up is confirmed in news reports. The date and place of his first appearance and his debut-season stats are from Wikipedia; not confirmed in news reports.Started at second base and led off for the first time in the playoffs in Game 3 against the SK Wyverns, and went 2 for 3 with a walk and a run. With the score tied 2-2 in the bottom of the fifth, he led off with a triple to right-center.
Source 05 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · Playoff Game 3 · opens in a new tabKiwoom lost Korean Series Game 4 to the Doosan Bears 9-11 and finished as runner-up. Sports Donga wrote that Kim, with Lee Jung-hoo and Song Sung-mun, won a starting spot that year.
Source 29 · Sports Donga (Korean) · 2019 Korean Series runner-up · opens in a new tabStarted at second base, batting seventh, against the KT Wiz and hit for the cycle with a solo home run in the fourth, a single in the fifth, a double in the sixth and a triple in the eighth. It was the 26th cycle in KBO League history and the second for the Heroes.
Source 06 · Mediapen (Korean) · Hitting for the cycle · opens in a new tabMade the final national team roster for the Tokyo Olympics baseball tournament as a shortstop, along with Oh Ji-hwan. It was his first selection to the senior national team.
Source 30 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · Final roster for the Tokyo Olympics baseball team · opens in a new tabSucceeded Park Byung-ho as the new captain of the Kiwoom Heroes by a vote of the players. He was the youngest first-team captain in the KBO League since its founding.
Source 07 · MK Sports (Korean) · New captain · opens in a new tabLed the KBO with 46 stolen bases on Nov. 29, and on Dec. 10 also won the Golden Glove at shortstop. That year he batted .304 with 170 hits and 99 runs in 144 games, and it was his first Golden Glove.
After making a league-high 35 errors at shortstop in the 2021 season, moved to second base from the start of the season. A sidearm-style throwing habit was cited as the cause of the errors.
Source 10 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · Switch to second base · opens in a new tab The date of the move is not confirmed in news reports, so the month it was reported is used.Won the Golden Glove at second base after batting .318 (164 hits) with 4 home runs and 48 RBIs in 129 games. He was the first player in KBO League history to win Golden Gloves at both shortstop and second base.
Source 12 · Xports News (Korean) · 2022 Golden Glove at second base · opens in a new tabSource 11 · Hankyoreh (Korean) · 2022 Golden Glove · opens in a new tabAs captain of the national team at the Hangzhou Asian Games, helped beat Taiwan 2-0 in the final for a fourth straight title. Asked to name an MVP, manager Ryu Joong-il named him along with final starter Moon Dong-ju.
Source 13 · Ilgan Sports (Korean) · Hangzhou Asian Games final · opens in a new tabSource 14 · Newsis (Korean) · Manager Ryu Joong-il on MVP: Kim Hye-seong and Moon Dong-ju · opens in a new tab The Games are called the 2022 Asian Games but were postponed because of COVID-19 and held in 2023.Received 259 of 291 valid votes (89.0%) for his second straight Golden Glove at second base. Including the 2021 shortstop award, it was his third straight Golden Glove.
Source 15 · Sports Donga (Korean) · 2023 Golden Glove and Fair Play Award · opens in a new tabAlso received his first Fair Play Award at the Golden Glove ceremony.
Source 15 · Sports Donga (Korean) · 2023 Golden Glove and Fair Play Award · opens in a new tabMLB.com said Kim’s posting would be announced in the early hours of Dec. 5 Korean time. In 953 career KBO games he batted .304 with 37 home runs, 386 RBIs and 211 stolen bases, and in 2024 he batted .326 with 11 home runs and 75 RBIs.
Source 16 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · Major League posting to be announced · opens in a new tabWon a third straight Golden Glove at second base, the first to do so since Kim Sung-rae in 1986-88, 36 years earlier. Including the 2021 shortstop award, he became the 14th player to win Golden Gloves in four straight seasons.
Source 17 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · 2024 Golden Glove, first in 36 years · opens in a new tabSource 18 · Newsis (Korean) · 2024 Golden Glove, fourth straight season · opens in a new tabSigned with the Dodgers for 3+2 years and up to $22 million (three guaranteed years, $12.5 million), three hours before the negotiation deadline, and moved to the Major Leagues.
Source 19 · Newsis (Korean) · Dodgers contract · opens in a new tabAfter going hitless in the last spring game, he did not travel to Tokyo for the opening series and started the season with the Dodgers’ Triple-A team.
Source 20 · Maeil Business Newspaper (Korean) · Starts the season in Triple-A · opens in a new tabDebuted in the bottom of the ninth as a defensive replacement at second base against the Atlanta Braves. Two days later he started against the Miami Marlins and went 2 for 4 for his first multi-hit game.
Source 21 · Newsis (Korean) · Major League debut · opens in a new tabWent 2 for 2 against the Athletics, including his first home run in the Major Leagues.
Source 22 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · First Major League home run · opens in a new tabDiagnosed with left shoulder bursitis and placed on the injured list.
Source 23 · Newsis (Korean) · Returns home after the World Series title · opens in a new tabCame back from the injury and returned to the Major Leagues, batting .130 (3 hits in 23 at-bats) in 13 games in September.
Source 23 · Newsis (Korean) · Returns home after the World Series title · opens in a new tabPinch ran in Game 4 of the National League Division Series on Oct. 10, and on Nov. 2 came in as a defensive replacement at second base for Miguel Rojas in the bottom of the 11th inning of Game 7 of the World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays. The Dodgers won their second straight World Series, and Kim became the second Korean Major Leaguer to win a title, after Kim Byung-hyun.
Source 24 · Xports News (Korean) · Postseason appearances · opens in a new tabSource 23 · Newsis (Korean) · Returns home after the World Series title · opens in a new tabKorea lost 0-10 to the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic quarterfinals, eliminated in a seven-inning mercy-rule game. It was the first quarterfinal since the 2009 runner-up finish, 17 years earlier.
Source 25 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · Back from the WBC quarterfinals · opens in a new tabSource 26 · The Gate (Korean) · Looking back on the WBC quarterfinal · opens in a new tabAfter batting .259 in 43 Major League games, he was sent down to Triple-A in late May. While his Triple-A team, the Oklahoma City Comets, won the title, he had 6 hits in 4 minor league postseason games.
Source 27 · Sports Chosun (Korean) · Wrapping up the 2026 season · opens in a new tabSource 28 · Sports Donga (Korean) · Triple-A title · opens in a new tabEND OF SELECTED RECORDSSelected records, 2016–2026 · not a complete list of work. “Key moment” is an editorial label, not a measure of success.
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AgeTrail lines up the key moments of a life by age.
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Sports · South Korea
Jan 27, 1999 —
Ages are counted from the birth year 1999: the year of the event minus 1999, birthdays aside. “Key moment” labels and the connecting story are AgeTrail's editorial reading.
Fact-checked: 2026.09.29 · An independent archive, not affiliated with the person or their agency.