Ha-seong Kim sits as Braves use day-to-day shortstop rotation

Ha-seong Kim stayed out of the lineup again on Friday, and the Braves answered by using a day-to-day rotation at shortstop in Cincinnati. Walt Weiss said the club will keep handling the position that way while Kim remains on the bench.

"It’s a day-to-day thing," Weiss said Friday before the opener of a three-game series against the Reds. Atlanta gave Kim $20 million to be its everyday shortstop this season, but the 30-year-old has started slowly after an offseason finger injury delayed his season.

Jorge Mateo starts in Cincinnati

Jorge Mateo got the start at shortstop Friday after Kim sat Wednesday in Boston, Thursday in Boston and again Friday in Cincinnati. Mateo has given Atlanta a steadier bat in the short term, hitting.319 over 35 games while adding seven stolen bases, second on the club only to Ronald Acuña Jr.’s 10.

Over his last three games, Mateo went 5-for-12 with a double, three RBIs, three runs scored, a walk and a stolen base, and he struck out only once. He also made a highlight-reel play in the field Friday, ranging to his right and throwing on the run to retire Elly De La Cruz.

Kim’s slow start

Kim’s line sits at 4-for-42 with 13 strikeouts in 12 games, a start that has kept him from locking down the role the Braves built for him. Weiss said Thursday that Kim had a good work day and would be allowed to work on some things for another day or two.

That leaves Atlanta juggling 13 position players and sorting the spot by production, not by contract. Weiss spelled out that approach clearly: "I’ve talked about the challenge of juggling 13 position players, and I try to keep everyone involved as best I can."

He added, "You play the guys that are swinging the bat well, and you ride that wave." For now, that wave runs through Mateo at shortstop while Kim tries to get back to the form that led Atlanta to pay for him as an everyday answer.