The Lotte Giants held a memorial event in honor of the late Choi Dong-won, who wore No. 11.
Lotte held the ‘Choi Dong-won Memorial Day’ event before the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League game against the NC Dinos at Sajik Stadium on Wednesday. Choi Dong-won’s mother, Kim Jung-ja, was in attendance, as well as Lotte acting head coach Lee Jong-woon, captain Ahn Chi-hong, and general manager Sung Min-kyu.
The event began with a wreath-laying ceremony at 3:40 p.m. in front of the statue of Choi Dong-won in Sajik Stadium Square, followed by a talk by Lotte’s first manager Park Young-gil (who personally scouted Choi Dong-won for Lotte in 1982) and fan signings by legendary pitchers Yeom Jong-seok and Joo Hyung-kwang.바카라
Before the game, a memorial video was shown on the big screen, and the players and spectators observed a moment of silence together. The Lotte players also wore memorial patches on their jerseys with Choi’s number 11 and silhouette.
Choi was Lotte’s first player to have his number retired and is a team legend. In 1984, he led the team to its first Korean Series title, winning four games in a best-of-seven series. His career record of 103 wins, 74 losses, 26 saves, 1414⅔ innings pitched in 248 games (81 complete games) with a 2.46 ERA was the top vote-getter along with Sun Dong-yeol, Lee Jong-beom, and Lee Seung-yup in the KBO’s 40th anniversary “Legends 40,” which was announced last year.
Lotte has been hosting Choi Dong-won Memorial Day since 2012. Excluding the fifth anniversary in 2016, when the team did not have a home game and held a memorial event organized by the Memorial Business Association, this year is the 11th.
Lee said before the game, “(Choi Dong-won) was our president and a great player. I think the event itself will have a special place in the hearts of the players,” he said, vowing to win.
