All the finalists were revealed today for the Rawlings Gold Glove Awards. Winners will be announced on November 17th @ 5PM PST.
Catcher
Martin Maldonado made the cut along with Salvator Perez who has earned the AL Catching gold glove 4 years in a row. Yan Gomes is the final candidate in this category. Maldy has a real shot at this award and could bump Perez from winning his 5th straight award. Maldanado also caught 200 innings more than Perez and 300 more than Gomes. If only there were also an “Iron” catcher award.
Shortstop
Andrelton Simmons, Elvis Andrus, and Francisco Lindor all made the cut here. Andrus has yet to win a gold glove in his career. Simmons, who won a pair of gold gloves back in 2013 and 2014, lost out to Lindor in 2016. He should have good shot this year, which certainly ranked up there with the best of his defensive years.
Left Field
Justin Upton sure didn’t earn the nod based on his time as an Angel. But he’s on the short list along with Alex Gordon and Brett Gardner. Gordon had a 4 year streak of gold gloves from 2011-2014 and Gardner took home the award in 2016. Upton isn’t exactly known for his defense and he’ll probably not be surprised if he doesn’t take home this award.
Right Field
Kole Calhoun joins a tough group of nominees that includes Aaron Judge and Mookie Betts. Going up against the East Coast favorites will be a tough road. Calhoun won the award in 2015 followed by Betts in 2016. Despite Calhoun having more outfield assists than the other guys, Betts is the clear favorite here.