MLB Trade Rumors: Orioles Reportedly Planning to Send Hyun Soo Kim Back to South Korea

The Baltimore Orioles' relationship with South Korean baseball star Hyun Soo Kim is reportedly nearing its end after the team found out that the outfielder may not be the right guy they need. This move is a surprising, albeit, right one even if they gave him a two-year contract several months ago.

Kim's transition to American baseball style of play may be more to blame than his performance and abilities as a player. He appeared in 48 spring training games and was only able to produce a batting average of .182, which obviously just too low. While cutting ties with him seems to be the direction the O's are looking at right now, there still is no certainty if this will happen. There's a good chance they might give him some more time to redeem himself.

Kim captured the attention of several MLB clubs when he made a name for himself in the KBO League in South Korea. Prior to his jump to the U.S., he was considered one of the best hitters in the KBO for almost a decade, boasting numbers of .318/.406/.488. In this last stint in the league, he hit a career high 27 homers. He also became the batting champion of the league back in 2008, when he produced an average of .357.

But the way things are going right now, Kim may already have figured out this early that the transition to the most competitive baseball league in the world isn't a walk in the park. Though he comes with the kind of resume every aspiring professional baseball player wants to carry with them, his performance hasn't been that great in terms of translating that resume into quantifiable production.

So if Kim agrees with the idea of going home, there actually is little for the Orioles to lose. They have guys who can contribute day in and day out, including Adam Jones, who is expected to be a fixture at center field, and Mark Trumbo and Joey Rickard, both of which have been playing great in spring training.