If Diaz hits 50 home runs and Anderson takes away the strikeout king, will Ponce MVP be shaken

Sep 24, 2025

If Diaz hits 50 home runs and Anderson takes away the strikeout king, will Ponce MVP be shaken
The game between Samsung and NC at Changwon NC Park on the 18th, Samsung Diaz hitting a three-run home run with no outs and runners on the first and second bases in the top of the fourth inning and sharing joy. Diaz hit his 48th home run, setting a tie for the most home runs in a season for a foreign hitter. Changwon= Reporter Huh Sang-wook's wook@sportschosun.com/2025.09.18/



If Diaz hits 50 home runs and Anderson takes away the strikeout king, will Ponce MVP be shaken
The game between the Hanwha Eagles and the Kiwoom Heroes at Hanwha Life Ball Park in Daejeon on the 13th. Hanwha Ponce is smiling. Daejeon = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2025.09.13/
If Diaz hits 50 home runs and Anderson takes away the strikeout king, will Ponce MVP be shaken
KBO League SSG and KIA match held at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on the 27th. SSG Anderson is pitching as a starter. Incheon = Song Jeong-heon Reporter's songs@sportschosun.com/2025.08.27/
If you pick the MVP of the 2025 KBO League regular league so far, the name of Cody Ponce of the Hanwha Eagles will be called the most.

In 28 games, he is ranked first in all four titles that starting pitchers can take, including multiple wins, ERA, strikeouts, and winning percentage with 17 wins, 1.85 ERA, 242 strikeouts, and winning percentage.

There has never been a pitcher swept four categories, so Ponce is aiming for the first four-time pitcher title ever.




In fact, if Ponce wins four gold medals, many expect Ponce to become the MVP of the regular league.

One of Ponce's opponents is foreign hitter Lewin Diaz of the Samsung Lions.

Diaz, who is playing in 138 games, has a batting average of 34 percent and 161 hits, 48 homers, 144 RBIs, and a slugging percentage of 0.629 in total.




It ranks first in three categories: home run, RBI, and slugging percentage. He is tied for first in the number of home runs by foreign batters in history and is expected to surpass Park Byung-ho's record of 146 RBIs in a season set when he was with Nexen in 2015.

As Samsung still has six games left, there is a possibility that Diaz will set a new record for the most home runs by foreigners and a new record for the most RBIs in a season. If he hits two more, he may become the first foreigner to reach the 50th home run mark, which was recorded by only three players: Lee Seung-yeop (54 in 1999 and 56 in 2003, Shim Jung-soo (53 in 2003) and Park Byung-ho (52 in 2014 and 53 in 2015).

If Diaz hits 50 home runs and Anderson takes away the strikeout king, will Ponce MVP be shaken
A match between the Samsung Lions and SSG Landers at Daegu Lions Park on the 11th. Samsung Diaz is cheering after hitting a solo shot with one out in the bottom of the fourth inning. Daegu = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2025.09.11/
If Diaz hits 50 home runs and Anderson takes away the strikeout king, will Ponce MVP be shaken
The game between the Hanwha Eagles and the Kiwoom Heroes at Hanwha Life Ball Park in Daejeon on the 13th. Hanwha Ponce is pitching hard. Daejeon = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2025.09.13/
If Diaz sets a meaningful record in the rest of the game, there will be a justification for competing with Ponce for MVP.

In addition, Ponce's four-time crown is not yet a safe situation. The number of wins, ERA, and winning rate can be said to be a big deal, but the strikeout part has become a close game. Even though Drew Anderson of SSG Landers became a losing pitcher against Doosan on the 22nd, he stole seven strikeouts to become 240 and was second to Ponce. Ponce's game against the LG Twins on the 26th is likely to be his last appearance, and Anderson may play two games if SSG is not confirmed for third place due to the remaining game schedule canceled due to rain, which could be disadvantageous to Ponce.

If Ponce misses the strikeout title and wins only three gold medals, including multiple wins, ERA, and winning percentage, and Diaz wins three gold medals with 50 home runs and the most RBIs, the pattern could be different.

The fight for first and second place is not over, and the fight for third, fourth and fifth place is also underway, so the KBO League, which is all-time interested, is inducing interest in the MVP competition to the end.





This article was translated by Naver AI translator.