The awards ceremony for the 12th BNK Choi Dong-won Award, which selects the best pitchers in Korean professional baseball, was held at 2 p.m. on the 11th at the second-floor auditorium of the Busan Bank headquarters in Nam-gu, Busan.
This year's BNK Choi Dong-won Award winner was 'super ace' Cody Ponce, who led the 2025-season Hanwha Eagles to the Korean Series. Ponce, who is from the United States, dominated this season as Hanwha's ace, rewriting various KBO League records.
He set historic records such as most strikeouts in a single regular game (18), the longest consecutive wins by a starter since opening day (17 consecutive wins), and most strikeouts in a single season (252). With a regular season record of 17 wins and 1 loss, an earned run average of 1.89, and 252 strikeouts, he became the first foreign pitcher in the KBO to win the quadruple crown for wins·winning percentage·strikeouts·earned run average.
The Choi Dong-won Memorial Foundation said, "With overwhelming performance this season, he led Hanwha to second place in the league and delivered fall baseball for the first time in seven years," and "He met all the standards of an ace left by Choi Dong-won, so the selection committee unanimously chose him as the recipient of the 12th BNK Busan Bank Choi Dong-won Award."
Ponce, who did not yet leave for the United States and attended the ceremony in person, said, "I know well how meaningful the Choi Dong-won Award is, given to the best pitcher of the year," and added, "I am grateful that the eight judges selected me unanimously, and I sincerely thank the Hanwha Eagles organization, my teammates and the fans."
He then addressed Choi Dong-won's mother, Mrs. Kim Jeong-ja, saying, "I will remember the great pitcher Choi Dong-won," and added, "I am even more honored to receive an award bearing such a great name." He also sent a message to his wife, who recently gave birth to their daughter, saying, "I am especially thankful and I love you."
When asked about his whereabouts next year, Ponce answered, "Nothing has been decided yet. What I want to focus on now is spending a lot of time with my newborn daughter and my wife. Nothing specific has come out about next year's plans."
The prize money for the Busan Bank Choi Dong-won Award, sponsored by BNK Busan Bank, is 20 million won.
Meanwhile, the 8th Dae-sun High School Choi Dong-won Award, selected by votes from 36 scouts of the 10 professional baseball teams, went to Shin Dong-geon, a third-year student at Dongsan High School in Incheon. Shin Dong-geon pitched 72 1/3 innings in 16 games this year, recording 8 wins, an earned run average of 0.88 and 70 strikeouts. With these results, he entered the Lotte Giants as the fourth overall pick in the first round of the 2026 rookie draft.
Shin Dong-geon said, "Senior Choi Dong-won has always been my role model. Since I was young I wanted to resemble him, so I wore number 11," and added, "I was able to grow thanks to all the managers and coaches who guided me in elementary, middle and high school."
He added, "I know well the expectations placed on the Dae-sun High School Choi Dong-won Award," and said, "Next year I will work hard to get many opportunities in the first team so that someday I can become a retired number player for the Lotte Giants." The prize money is 10 million won.
The 6th Baeksong indomitable Choi Dong-won Award was won for the second consecutive year by Kyoto International High School, a Korea-affiliated school in Kyoto, Japan. Kyoto International High School has established itself as a powerhouse, winning the Koshien tournament last year and advancing to the final eight this year as well.
Selection committee chairman and manager Kim Si-jin said, "Choi Dong-won was my longtime rival and friend," and added, "I thank the citizens who showed great interest in this awards ceremony held in the baseball city of Busan and all the awardees who shone this year."
Director Park Young-bong of the Choi Dong-won Memorial Foundation urged, "Choi Dong-won was a pitcher who wore number 11, saying 'No. 1 is lonely.' He was a true ace who prioritized 'we' over 'me,'" and added, "I hope everyone here today remembers Choi Dong-won's spirit of fighting spirit·devotion·sacrifice·challenge."
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