KBO names 79 Golden Glove nominees as race for 10 awards begins
The KT Wiz, Samsung Lions and LG Twins lead with 10 nominees each for the regular-season award.
KBO players and KBO Commissioner Heo Koo-youn, center in front, pose for photos at the 2025 KBO Golden Glove awards ceremony held at Lotte Hotel World in Songpa District, southern Seoul, on Dec. 9, 2025.
YONHAP
A field of 79 players will compete for just 10 Golden Gloves as the KBO prepares to honor its top performers of 2026.
The awards recognize the season's top 10 performers across eight positions: one pitcher, one catcher, one first baseman, one second baseman, one third baseman, one shortstop, three outfielders and one designated hitter.
This year's pool of nominees includes 25 pitchers, seven catchers, five first basemen, six second basemen, five third basemen, seven shortstops, 21 outfielders and three designated hitters.
The KT Wiz, Samsung Lions and LG Twins led all clubs with 10 nominees each.
To qualify, pitchers must meet at least one of four criteria: Pitch the required 144 innings, record at least 10 wins, record at least 30 saves or record at least 30 holds.
Catchers and other fielders must have played at least 720 defensive innings in their respective positions, equivalent to five innings per game. Designated hitters must have made at least 297 plate appearances in that role.
Players who led the league in individual statistical categories, such as ERA, batting average and home runs, automatically qualified regardless of whether they met those thresholds. They were nominated at positions where they met the requirements or, if none applied, at the positions where they logged the most defensive innings or played the highest proportion of their games. The media began voting Saturday.
Since last year, the KBO has moved the voting period forward to the first round of playoffs to ensure that nominees are judged solely on their regular-season performances, rather than their postseason results.
The 10 winners will be announced at the Golden Glove awards ceremony at Lotte Hotel World in southern Seoul on Dec. 8.
BY KO BONG-JUN [[email protected]]
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
