The 2023 KBO League MVP was three-time pitcher Eric Peddy (NC), and the Rookie of the Year was 160 km runner Moon Dong-ju (Hanwha).
‘Triple Crown Pitcher’ Peddie and ‘Baby Eagle’ Moon Dong-ju became the brightest stars in the 2023 KBO League. Peddie, who won three awards as a pitcher, failed to win the award unanimously, but was named MVP with a high vote rate of 91.9%, and Dong-ju Moon also won the Rookie of the Year award for the first time in his life with a very high vote rate of 76.6%.
The ‘2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO Awards Ceremony’, which selects and highlights the players who performed best in the 2023 KBO regular season, was held at the Grand Ballroom of the Westin Chosun Hotel in Seoul at 2 p.m. on the 27th. 카지노사이트랭크
The honor of being named the 2023 KBO League Most Valuable Player (MVP) belonged to NC Dinos’ foreign pitcher Peddie. This season, Peddie led NC by taking the triple crown by ranking first in three categories: wins (20 wins), ERA (2.00), and strikeouts (209). It has been 12 years since Yoon Seok-min (KIA) in 2011, and he succeeded in winning the Triple Crown for the 7th time in history, and was expected to win unanimously.
In fact, Pedi received overwhelming support, receiving 102 votes, or 91.9% of the 111 valid votes.
This season, Peddie appeared in 30 games (180.1 innings), recording 20 wins (1st place), 6 losses, 209 strikeouts (1st place), and an ERA of 2.00 (1st place). Previously, Sun Dong-yeol (Haitai Tigers, 1986, 1989-1991) ), as well as Ryu Hyun-jin (Hanwha Eagles, 2006) and Yoon Seok-min (KIA Tigers, 2011), who achieved the feat of winning the triple crown.
In addition, Peddy is the 5th player in 37 years and the 5th overall since Sun Dong-yeol in 1986 (Haitai, 24 wins, 214 strikeouts) (1983, Jang Myeong-bu, Sammi Superstars, 30 wins, 220 strikeouts, 1984, Choi Dong-won, Lotte Giants, 27 wins, 223 strikeouts, 1985) Kim Si-jin, Samsung Lions, 25 wins, 201 strikeouts, Sun Dong-yeol in 1986) He left his mark as a player who achieved 20 wins and 200 strikeouts in a season.
Noh Si-hwan, who won two gold medals in the batting category this season, received six votes, equivalent to second place, but had to swallow his disappointment. Noh Si-hwan, a 5-year professional, created a new history as a hitter in his 20s by becoming the home run leader (31 home runs) and RBI leader (101 RBI) despite being selected for the Asian Games, but was unable to surpass Peddy, who won the pitcher triple crown.
Other glorious MVP candidates include the players who ranked first in each title, as well as SSG Seo Jin-yong, Choi Jeong, Kiwoom Jurado, Kim Hye-seong, LG Austin, Hong Chang-ki, KT Go Young-pyo, Park Young-hyun, Cuevas, Son A-seop, Samsung Buchanan, and others recommended by the Korea Baseball Writers Association. Koo Ja-wook, Doosan Alcantara, and Su-bin Jeong rose.
Among them, Hong Chang-ki, who won two awards in on-base percentage and runs scored, received 2 votes and ranked 3rd in MVP voting, and Choi Jeong, who ranked first in slugging percentage, received 1 vote and ranked 4th.
On this day, Peddie, who held a total of 5 trophies, including the pitcher’s triple title, the defense award, and the MVP, expressed his honor for establishing himself as the best player as MVP. He also brought tears to his eyes several times as he expressed his gratitude to his teammates and his apologies for not appearing in the playoffs.
Immediately after winning MVP, Peddie said, “I am unbelievably happy. I would like to express my gratitude to the KBO League. “I couldn’t have won this award if I hadn’t come to this league,” he said. “I was able to win it because I came to a team called NC. He expressed his gratitude again, saying, “I was able to have a good season thanks to the team’s great help.”
At the same time, Peddie said, “My family came all the way to Korea, a far away country, and helped me a lot. My parents, younger brother, and girlfriend even came to help. “In particular, his father came all the way here with us,” he said, bowing his head.
Peddie, who returned to the United States after the end of this season, came to Korea on the 26th to participate in the awards ceremony. After participating in the awards ceremony, he completed his personal schedule, and although it was a short schedule of 2 nights and 3 days, returning on the 28th, he decided to participate in the awards ceremony to celebrate the end.
Scott Peddie, the father of Special Peddie, came all the way to Korea to attend the awards ceremony and couldn’t hide his joy as he shared his son’s glorious moment. Scott Peddie spoke briefly with reporters after the awards ceremony. “I believe that if Peddy could have pitched, he would have thrown,” said his father, Scott Peddie, who saw Peddie’s tears. Peddie is a competitive and competitive player. “He must have been very angry because he couldn’t throw.”
Scott Peddie said, “I advised my son to choose well because it was probably the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to live abroad and play in a different league,” and added, “I am proud of my son. “He is a really hard-working player,” he said with a bright smile.
Son Fedi also expressed his joy in receiving the award to his colleagues. “He couldn’t have won the award if it weren’t for so many players playing on the same team,” said Peddie. I want you to know that we are brothers. Manager Kang In-kwon and pitching coach Kim Soo-kyung provided a lot of help. “The data team and training department also provided great help,” he said. “I also want to give honor to the cities of Changwon and Masan. Many citizens in Changwon provided great help. The cities of Changwon and Masan are my second hometown wherever I go. “Thank you,” he said.
Peddie, who was hit on the right forearm by a batted ball at the end of the regular season, appeared in only one PS game due to the aftermath. In some quarters, there was a ‘controversy over sabotage’ about Peddie, who did not play in the final game of the playoffs, but he showed his sincerity by shedding tears when NC failed to advance to the Korean Series.
When the incident was mentioned, Fedi’s eyes turned red again. Peddie said, “I changed a lot emotionally at that time. “I cried because I couldn’t help the team much,” he said. “As I said before, all the players on the team are brothers to me. I think that’s why I was more emotional. To be honest, I was afraid during the training camp because it was an unfamiliar environment. “But they took such good care of me from the first day,” he said, repeatedly bringing tears to his eyes.
It is highly likely that Peddie will return to the major leagues after this season. There were reports pouring in from the U.S. that Pedi would sign a multi-year contract. As a result, in what was likely to be the last moment, it was a pedi that shined even brighter, conveying his sincere feelings about the KBO League and NC.
The honor of Rookie of the Year, which stood out the most among the KBO League rookies and new players, went to Hanwha’s second-year right-handed pitcher Moon Dong-ju. Moon Dong-ju received 85 votes (76.6%) out of 111 valid votes, beating first-year left-handed pitcher Yoon Young-cheol of the KIA Tigers (15 votes), who was considered a strong competitor, and took the honor.
Moon Dong-ju pitched in 23 games this season and performed outstandingly, posting a record of 8 wins, 8 losses, and an ERA of 3.72, contributing to a gold medal at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games and a runner-up finish at the 2023 Asian Professional Baseball Championship. In addition, Moon Dong-ju broke the KBO League’s official highest velocity (160.1 km) in a game against the KIA Tigers in April, leaving great joy and excitement to baseball fans.
In the history of the Hanwha club, this is the first Rookie of the Year to be produced in 17 years since Ryu Hyun-jin (MVP, simultaneous winner of Rookie of the Year) in 2006.
That’s why, right after winning the Rookie of the Year award, Dong-ju Moon stood on the podium with a trembling expression. Afterwards, Moon Dong-ju said, “Now that I’m standing here, there are a lot of things I want to say. “What comes to mind right now is that the trophy seems very heavy,” he said, then took a moment to catch his breath and said, “I think I will have to bear the weight of this trophy.” He seemed to deeply feel the glory of winning the Rookie of the Year award.
He then expressed his gratitude to the leaders he worked with along the way. Dong-ju Moon said, “Hanwha Eagles coach Won-ho Choi and coach Dong-geol Lee. “I would also like to thank former coach Carlos Subero and the coaching staff,” he said, adding, “I was able to win this award because the power analysis team and training department paid a lot of attention this season.”
In addition, Moon Dong-ju expressed his gratitude to those closest to him, saying, “I am always so grateful to my parents and family,” and added, “Lastly, as far as I know, this is the first award I have received (at Hanwha) in 17 years since senior Ryu Hyun-jin. “I will give this honor to the fans,” he said, finally giving glory to Hanwha fans.
Next year’s goal is for Hanwha to soar to greater heights. Dong-ju Moon said, “I think our team should rise to a higher level next year. “I will throw hard so that I can reach a higher place,” he pledged.