LG Twins, NC Dinos players lead field at KBO Golden Gloves

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LG Twins, NC Dinos players lead field at KBO Golden Gloves

Published: 12 Dec. 2023, 07:58

JIM BULLEY
[email protected]

The winners of the 2023 KBO Golden Gloves pose for a photo at the COEX Auditorium in Gangnam, southern Seoul. From left: Kim Hye-seong, who also won the KBO Fielding Award; Park Kun-woo; Roh Si-hwan; Yang Eui-ji; Son Ah-seop, who also collected the award for Erick Fedde; Koo Ja-wook; Hong Chang-ki, who also collected the award for Austin Dean; and Oh Ji-hwan. [YONHAP]

Doosan Bears catcher Yang Eui-ji one his ninth Golden Glove award on Monday, pulling one step closer to the KBO record at the 2023 awards ceremony in Gangnam, southern Seoul.

Yang, the sole Doosan player to win a Golden Glove this year, took 214 of the 291 votes cast by media. He has won the award nine times, eight at catcher — 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023 — and once at designated hitter in 2021.

That puts Yang one off the KBO record, currently held by former Samsung Lions slugger and current Bears manager Lee Seung-yuop.

Yang was one of 10 players to win a Golden Glove on Monday, with awards given to the eight on-field positions, pitcher and designated hitter — unlike the MLB Gold Glove, which is awarded based solely on defensive prowess, the KBO’s Golden Glove is focused on overall performance.

Unsurprisingly, the pennant and Korean Series-winning LG Twins led the Golden Gloves lineup.

The shortstop glove went to Korean Series MVP Oh Ji-hwan, who narrowly edged out Park Chan-ho of the Kia Tigers by 34 votes in the most hotly-contested race, with teammate Austin Dean taking first base and Hong Chang-ki leading the vote in the outfield.

The NC Dinos, who finished the regular season in fourth place but made it to the second round of the playoffs, also saw three players win awards.

KBO MVP Erick Fedde took the sole pitcher award with more than 90 percent of the vote, an unsurprising win considering he ended the season with a triple crown and has since gone on to sign with the Chicago White Sox.

Fedde was joined by teammates NC Park Kun-woo and designated hitter Son Ah-seop.

The Samsung Lions, Hanwha Eagles and Kiwoom Heroes took the three remaining awards, with Samsung’s Koo Ja-wook completing the outfield lineup, Hanwha’s Roh Si-hwan at third base and Kiwoom’s Kim Hye-seong, who also won the inaugural KBO Fielding Award, at second.

Those individual achievements stand out particularly due to the overall performance of the respective teams. Koo, Roh and Kim managed the best overall performances at their individual positions despite the Lions, Eagles and Heroes finishing in eighth, ninth and 10th on the KBO table.

The second-place KT Wiz, third-place SSG Landers, sixth-place Kia Tigers and seventh-place Lotte Giants failed to see any player win an award, although the Wiz, Landers and Tigers did finish second in some categories. The Giants alone did not see a single player receive more than 10 votes at any position.

Neither Fedde nor Dean were available to accept their Golden Glove, with their teammates instead collecting on their behalf. While Fedde has now left the KBO for the big leagues, Dean will return to Korea in the spring to rejoin the Twins on a one-year, $1.3-million contract signed shortly after the KBO season ended last month.

BY JIM BULLEY [[email protected]]