Braves' Ha-Seong Kim: Cleared for fielding work

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Kim (finger) arrived at spring training Monday and said that he's been cleared to take part in fielding drills, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

After suffering a torn tendon in his right middle finger in an offseason accident, Kim underwent surgery Jan. 18 to address the injury and is facing an estimated recovery timeline of 4-to-5 months. Because he's mostly been limited to rehab work for the first two months post-surgery, Kim stayed home for the beginning of camp, but he's now far enough along in his recovery to start working out with the team again and increasing his baseball activities. Kim has yet to resume swinging a bat, which will be the major hurdle that he will need to clear before embarking on a rehab assignment. Once he's ready to return from the injured list, Kim is expected to take over as Atlanta's everyday shortstop, but Mauricio Dubon will likely fill those duties for at least the first month and a half of the season.