[Official] Doosan and Samsung: 2 nominees each; KIA, Lotte, Kiwoom, SSG: 1 nominee each — Total of 8 KBO August Monthly MVP Candidates Officially Announced

*This content was translated by AI.

A total of eight KBO League August monthly MVP candidates were announced: two each from Doosan Bears and Samsung Lions, and one each from KIA Tigers, Lotte Giants, Kiwoom Heroes, and SSG Landers.

The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced on the 1st that "a total of eight players have been selected as candidates for the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League August monthly MVP."

First, in the pitcher category, SSG's Avila, Samsung's Fedek, Doosan's Kwak Bin, and Choi Min-seok; in the position player category, Samsung's Koo Ja-wook, Lotte's Reyes, KIA's Kim Do-young, and Kiwoom's Seo Geon-chang are vying for the August monthly MVP award.

▲ SSG Avila

SSG Avila showcased the strength of an ace. Having joined the team last July, he has been pitching consistently well and has emerged as SSG's top starter. In five games during August, he recorded 2 wins, 1 loss, and an ERA of 1.74. Notably, including his recent three outings where he each pitched seven innings, he logged a total of 31 innings and struck out 35 batters, ranking second in the league in both innings pitched and strikeouts. Along with his powerful strikeout ability, he also secured fifth place in ERA.

▲ Samsung Fedek

Samsung Fedek displayed stable pitching. Appearing in four games, he recorded 2 wins and 1 loss, posting an ERA of 1.00 (second in the league) and 32 strikeouts (tied for third). In all four appearances, he pitched at least six innings each, totaling 27 innings and fulfilling the workload of a top starter. Especially on August 23 against Changwon NC, he threw eight innings allowing only one run — his most ever in a domestic debut game — demonstrating the presence of an ace.

▲ Doosan Kwak Bin

Doosan Kwak Bin showed the qualities of a national team right-handed pitcher. Appearing in five games in August, he recorded 2 wins, 1 loss, and an ERA of 1.41 (third in the league). Notably, he logged 32 innings and 41 strikeouts, ranking first in both categories for the month. Across the entire season, he leads the league in strikeouts (169), ERA (2.36), and is tied for third in wins (11), positioning himself as a contender for the pitcher's triple crown. Kwak Bin has also been selected as a wildcard for the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games baseball national team, drawing expectations as the national team's ace.

▲ Doosan Choi Min-seok

Doosan Choi Min-seok went undefeated in August. Starting in four games, he earned victory in all of them, securing sole first place in wins for the month. On August 30 (Sunday), Choi reached his 13th win of the season, overtaking Im Chan-kyu of LG (12 wins) to take sole first place in the league's race for the wins title. Additionally, along with teammate Kwak Bin, Choi is set to compete at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, where he will inject energy into the national team as a promising young right-hander.

▲ Samsung Koo Ja-wook

Samsung's Koo Ja-wook demonstrated the dignity of a team captain. Appearing in 17 games in August, he posted a batting average of .403, with 25 hits, 4 home runs, and 17 RBIs. He showed consistent performance, ranking third in batting average, fourth in hits, and tied for fifth in RBIs. Notably, he led the league in on-base percentage at .519 and ranked fourth in slugging percentage at .661. Koo's season batting average stands at .359, second in the league, surpassing his previous career-high single-season average of .349 as he challenges for a new personal best.

▲ Lotte Reyes

Lotte Reyes showcased precise hitting even in August. In 15 games, Reyes recorded a batting average of .435, leading the league. He accumulated 27 hits and an on-base percentage of .470, ranking second in hits and third in on-base percentage. In his third year in the KBO League, Reyes is currently leading the league this season with a .362 batting average and 163 hits. Based on his consistent performance, he aims for his first KBO League batting title and to lead the league in hits for three consecutive years.

▲ KIA Kim Do-young

KIA's Kim Do-young displayed a powerful bat. With a .321 batting average and 6 home runs, he tied for first place in monthly home runs. He also recorded 16 runs scored and a slugging percentage of .714, ranking first in both categories. Especially on August 26 (Wednesday) against Gwangju Lotte, he hit his 39th home run of the season, surpassing his previous single-season record of 38 set in the 2024 season. Kim Do-young now looks toward becoming the first domestic hitter in eight years to reach 40 home runs since Kim Jae-hwan (then Doosan), Park Byung-ho (then Nexen), and Han Yu-seom (then SK) achieved it in 2018.

▲ Kiwoom Seo Geon-chang

Kiwoom's Seo Geon-chang announced a spectacular comeback. In 20 games, he recorded a .387 batting average and 29 hits. He showcased his hitting prowess, leading the league in hits and ranking fifth in batting average, while also demonstrating consistent table-setting ability with a .459 on-base percentage and 15 runs scored (tied for second). Seo, who achieved the first 200-hit season in KBO League history and won the regular-season MVP in 2014, now challenges for his first monthly MVP award after returning to Kiwoom six seasons since the 2020 season.

Meanwhile, the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League monthly MVP is selected each month jointly by the KBO and its title sponsor, Shinhan Bank. The monthly MVP award, given to the player who demonstrates the best performance in the KBO League each month, is determined by combining fan votes and votes from the Korean Baseball Writers Association to select Choi Jong (수상) winner(s). Fan voting can be participated in via Shinhan Bank's mobile application "Super SOL" from 10 a.m. on September 1 until midnight on September 6.

The monthly MVP winner, selected through the final voting results, will receive a prize of 3 million won and a commemorative monthly MVP trophy. Additionally, to support youth baseball development, Shinhan Bank will donate 2 million won in the name of the winning domestic player to their former middle school.

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*This content was translated by AI.