The year he turned 17, as a second-year at Gyeongnam High School, he threw a no-hitter against Gyeongbuk High School at the Champions Invitational Tournament.
The breakthrough yearThe year he turned 18, he struck out 20 batters against Gunsan Commercial High School in the winners’ final of the Blue Dragon Flag national high school baseball tournament. It was a record for strikeouts in a national tournament.
After Yonsei University, he joined the corporate-league team Lotte in 1981, went 17-1 and won three titles, and in September signed with the Toronto Blue Jays. He stayed in Korea because his military service was unresolved. In 1982, he played for the national team at the Amateur World Series, and Korea won. The year he turned 25, he joined the Lotte Giants and entered the pros. His first season was 9-16.
In 1984, he went 27-13 with 6 saves and was the regular-season MVP, then won four games on his own in the Korean Series against Samsung to lead Lotte to its first title. In 1985, he won 20 games, and he pitched as Lotte’s ace through 1987. In May 1987, he went head to head with Haitai’s Sun Dong-yol for 15 innings in a 2-2 tie.
In 1988, he led the founding of the pro baseball players’ association and became its first president, but was traded to Samsung that November. In 1989, he pitched for Samsung from the second half and went 1-2. In 1990, he retired as a player with a career record of 103-74 and 26 saves.
In 1993, he began two years as a baseball commentator. In 1995, he tried to return as a coach but teams would not take him, and he began appearing on TV. In November 2000, he was hired as Hanwha Eagles pitching coach, returning to coaching 10 years after retiring.
In October 2004, he signed a one-year contract with Hanwha and returned as a coach after three years. In 2005, he moved from second-team to first-team pitching coach. From 2006, he managed Hanwha’s second team for three years. In 2009, he worked as a KBO game operations commissioner.
The year he turned 53, he died on Sept. 14. On Sept. 30, Lotte retired number 11, the club’s first retired number. In 2013, a ceremony unveiling a memorial statue was held at the plaza in front of Sajik Stadium. On Nov. 11, 2014, the first Choi Dong-won Award ceremony was held. In 2022, he finished second in the vote for the KBO League’s 40 legends.
In 2024, a memorial event for the 13th anniversary of his death was held at Sajik Baseball Stadium. For the 14th anniversary, Lotte held a Memorial Day at a home game at Sajik. The 15th anniversary Memorial Day was held at Sajik Baseball Stadium on Sept. 11.
Choi Dong-won (born May 24, 1958) became known on Jun 18, 1976, the year he turned 18, when he struck out 20 batters against Gunsan Commercial High School in the Blue Dragon Flag winners’ final, and joined the Lotte Giants in 1983, the year he turned 25. In 1984, the year he turned 26, he won four games on his own in the Korean Series, and he died on Sep 14, 2011.
Ages are by calendar year (the year minus the birth year), birthdays aside.