Hanwha Eagles’ Noh Si-hwan, 23, has won the Golden Glove for the first time since his professional debut.
Noh won the Golden Glove in the third baseman category at the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO Golden Glove Award Ceremony held at the COEX Auditorium in Samseong-dong, Seoul on Nov. 11.
Noh, who joined Hanwha as a second-round (3rd overall) pick in the 2019 Rookie Draft, reached his full potential this year, batting .298 with 31 home runs, 101 RBIs and a .929 OPS in 131 games (514 at-bats, 153 hits). He led the league in home runs and RBIs, finished second in MVP voting, and won his first Golden Glove.
In an interview after the ceremony, Noh looked at the Golden Globe trophy and said, “It’s more beautiful in real life than I imagined when I was a kid watching it on TV, and it’s the right weight. I used to imagine this a lot when I was younger. I would see players getting the Golden Glove and think, ‘Is that glove really gold? I used to think, “When I become a professional athlete, can I get a Golden Glove like that? Now that I’m here receiving the award, it honestly hasn’t even sunk in yet. It’s a very happy day,” he said of his award.
This year’s third baseman Golden Glove race was a two-horse race between Noh and Choi. In particular, the home run title had the potential to change who won the Golden Glove. Noh led the home run race until midway through the season, but he missed a lot of games due to his participation in the Hangzhou Asian Games, and Choi had a nail-biting home run race until the end, hitting a total of 29 home runs.
When told in an interview before the ceremony that Choi holds the record for the most Golden Gloves won by a third baseman with eight, Noh marveled, “You’ve won so many,” and said, “You’re a role model and a competitor. He’s a role model and a competitor, and it’s because of him that I’ve been able to follow him and get to this point. I want to say thank you,” he said, expressing his gratitude to Choi.
“I think the Golden Glove is the most meaningful award,” said Noh, “Thank you for giving me such a good award. In a way, I can say that this is the beginning. It’s my first Golden Glove, but I’ll do my best to win the most Golden Gloves for a third baseman, starting with this one. Eight is a tough record, but I’m going to give it a shot and see if I can get to 10.”
Noh Si-hwan, who became the first Hanwha home run king in 15 years after Kim Tae-gyun (31 home runs) in 2008, said, “Unfortunately, I couldn’t hit 30-30, 100 RBIs this year. Next year, I’ll be overwhelmed if I can get the batting average.”
It has been 17 years since Hanwha’s third baseman won the Golden Glove since Lee Bum-ho in 2006. Noh said, “I think the fans have been waiting a lot. I will do my best to follow in the footsteps of Jang Jong-hoon and Kim Tae-gyun as a home run king. I want to tell my fans that I am always grateful to them,” he said, promising to do his best to maintain his position as the home run king.