The candidates for this season's KBO League Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year awards have been finalized, bringing together the marquee players who traded statistical crowns all year and setting off the voting battle for the league's top honor.
The Korea Baseball Organization announced the lists of MVP, Rookie of the Year and Manager of the Year candidates on the 13th, selected jointly with the Korea Baseball Writers' Association. A total of 14 players made the MVP list, led by those who claimed major pitching and batting titles.
Seven pitchers are in contention. Lim Chan-kyu of the LG Twins and Ko Young-pyo of the kt wiz, who tied for the most wins, anchor the starting rotation group, while Kwak Bin of the Doosan Bears, who swept both the earned run average and strikeout titles, is making a bid for the top pitcher honor. From the bullpen, saves leader Kim Jae-yun of the Samsung Lions was included among the candidates.
Seven hitters also square off. Kim Do-young of the KIA Tigers, who led the league in both home runs and slugging percentage, and Koo Ja-wook of Samsung, who topped the batting average and on-base percentage charts, set up a duel between a homegrown slugger and a contact hitter. Among foreign batters, runs-batted-in leader Sam Hilliard of kt and hits leader Victor Reyes of the Lotte Giants joined the field, further complicating the race.
Rookie of the Year candidates were selected under Article 7 of the KBO's awards regulations. Eligible players are those who joined a club in 2026, as well as those who entered between 2021 and 2025 but had not exceeded 30 innings pitched or 60 plate appearances in cumulative statistics before this season. Players with experience in professional leagues overseas were excluded.
Nine players made the final list. Six pitchers are in the running: Woo Kang-hoon of LG, Kim Min-jun of the SSG Landers, Jang Chan-hee of Samsung, Park Jung-min of Lotte, Kim Tae-hyung of KIA and Park Jun-hyeon of the Kiwoom Heroes. Three fielders are competing: Moon Jung-bin of LG, Heo In-seo of the Hanwha Eagles and Ryu Hyun-in of kt. All 10 club managers were named candidates for the Manager of the Year award, which was created in 2025.
The winners will be decided by a vote of reporters belonging to the Korea Baseball Writers' Association and journalists from regional media outlets, and will be announced at the KBO awards ceremony next month. The MVP will receive a trophy along with a Kia EV5 electric vehicle as a prize.