"Being called the successor to Kim Do-young is too great an honor for me," says humble KIA first-round power hitter Lee Ho-min, who received the Future Star Award and heads to training on a pre-dawn train [2026 Futures Star Awards]

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Lee Ho-min (18, KIA Tigers), a top-tier infielder from Gyeongnam High School who is expected to be the "successor to Kim Do-young," was honored with the Star Award in the baseball category at the 2026 Futures Star Awards.

Lee received the Star Award in the baseball category at the "2026 Futures Star Awards (hosted and organized by StarNews, sponsored by the Korea Sports & Olympic Committee, the National Sports Promotion Foundation, the Korea Baseball & Softball Association, the Korea Basketball Association, the Korea Volleyball Federation, Korea Sports Leisure Co., Ltd., and Palseok Mian)" ceremony held on the 26th in the press conference room on the 19th floor of the Korea Press Center in Jung-gu, Seoul.

More than 100 people attended the ceremony, including award recipients, officials from sports associations, federations, and teams, as well as members of the selection committee. Lee was awarded a prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won.

In his acceptance speech, Lee said, "I am honored to receive such a prestigious award. Going forward, I will keep this award in mind, avoid complacency, strive to move on to bigger stages, and work hard to become a player who serves as a role model for all athletes and is respected by them."

This year, Lee proved his worth on the high school stage with exceptional power hitting and precise batting skills. In 20 games, he posted a .420 batting average (29 hits), 2 home runs, 19 RBIs, 8 walks, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) of 1.132. Having hit a career-high 8 home runs in high school, he also activated his power at the U-18 Asia Youth Baseball Championship this year, demonstrating competitiveness on the international stage.

The selection committee described Lee as an "immediate impact infielder whose power production stands out, based on a stable batting mechanism, strong impact, and excellent punch," adding, "He possesses basic fielding abilities, and if his throwing accuracy improves in the future, he has the potential to explode with very high potential on both offense and defense."

The committee further explained, "He is a corner infielder prospect equipped with power and a slugger expected to hit 8 career home runs in high school. He possesses the qualities of a spray hitter who can send quality balls not only to center field but also to the right side, along with excellent batting potential, making him a resource that can leap to become a regular starter." They added, "He also activated his power at the U-18 Asia Youth Championship, firmly imprinting his exceptional batting talent."

Based on these performances, Lee was selected by KIA in the first round of the 2027 KBO Rookie Draft held last September. Recognized for his exceptional batting talent since high school, he is expected to grow into a promising player who can become a pillar of the middle of the lineup in the pros.

Lee has already begun adapting to professional baseball. After the ceremony, he met with reporters and said, "After being drafted, I joined the team and trained for about two days. Training with my pro seniors, I found many differences from amateur baseball, and there were also many changes in the training schedule. It seems I am still at the stage of adapting."

The first difference he felt was the training environment. Lee explained, "In a pro team, the roles of trainers are more specialized. There is also a wider variety of exercise equipment and facilities, so it seems they have set things up so that players can experience many different things. I think the biggest difference from my amateur days is being able to use such facilities."

Although he briefly stepped away from team training to attend the ceremony that day, he will return immediately. Lee said, "The team sent me, so I was able to attend," and added, "I have to take a train in the pre-dawn hours tomorrow to go back down and do morning practice."

It has not yet been decided whether he will join the full-fledged closing camp. He said, "I am not sure, but I think I probably will. Once the first division seniors finish the playoffs, I think we will go together, but the roster has not been released yet." Currently, because minor league players are participating in the Ulsan Education League, he is training with the remaining squad and rehabilitation players.

In particular, Lee is expected to be a power infielder who will take charge of KIA's future. Some even evaluate him as the successor to Kim Do-young (23). Among KIA officials, there are also those who recall Manager Lee Beom-ho (45), who made his name as a power third baseman during his playing days. However, Lee himself showed a humble reaction to the high expectations placed on him. He said, "It seems they are comparing me to people who are too great for me. I think I will have to work much harder in the future to catch up to them."

He is also closely watching his new team's fall baseball season. Lee said, "I hope Senior Kim Do-young and Senior Park Jae-hyun do well. I also hope my older brother Sung Young-tak, with whom I have a personal friendship, does well." He added regarding the possibility of KIA winning the Korea Series, "The momentum is good this year, so I think they will make it to the Korea Series. If they play well there too, I believe they can aim for the championship."

<2026 Futures Star Awards> Ceremony

■ Date: October 26, 2026 (Mon) at 3 p.m.

■ Location: Press Conference Room, 19th Floor, Korea Press Center (124 Sejong University-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul)

■ Award Recipients and Prizes (Total 10 people)

◇ Baseball

Ha Hyun-seung (18, Kiwoom Heroes 1R), 3rd year at Busan High School: Prize money of 3 million won

Lee Ho-min (18, KIA Tigers 1R), 3rd year at Gyeongnam High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

◇ Soccer

An Ju-wan (17, Seoul E-Land FC), 2nd year at Sinpyeong High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

Jeong Hyun-woong (18, FC Seoul), 3rd year at Osan High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

◇ Basketball

Yoon Ji-won (18), 3rd year at Gyeongbok High School: Prize money of 3 million won

Yoon Ji-hoon (18), 3rd year at Gyeongbok High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

◇ Volleyball

Son So-yeon (16), 1st year at Sunmyeong Girls' High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

◇ Golf

Yang Yun-seo (18), 3rd year at Incheon Girls' High School Affiliated Broadcasting & Open High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

◇ Skateboarding

Kang Jun-i (18), 3rd year at Yeongdeungpo High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

◇ Artistic Gymnastics

Hwang Seo-hyeon (18), 3rd year at Incheon Sports High School: Prize money of 1 million won and gift certificates worth 1 million won

■ Selection Committee Members

Former National Team Manager Kim In-sik (Selection Committee Chair), Cha Myeong-ju, Performance Improvement Committee Chair of the Korea Baseball & Softball Association (KBSA), Jung Min-hyuk, Head of the Hanwha Eagles Scouting Team, Kwon Do-young, Section Chief of the Kiwoom Heroes Scouting Team

Han Jun-hee, Commentator for Coupang Play, Son Seung-jun, Full-time Instructor for the Korea Football Association, Kwon Oh-gyu, Technical Director of Bucheon FC, Jeong Jae-yoon, Scout for Jeonbuk Hyundai

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original