2020 Gold Glove winners: Snubs and surprises abound

The Gold Glove Award winners were announced Tuesday. There is a mix of snubs and surprises on the list.

The Rawlings Gold Glove Award winners were announced Tuesday, November 3rd on ESPN. Three to four finalists were nominated for each position in the AL and NL in late October. Here are the 2020 Gold Glove winners:

American League

• P: Griffin Canning | Angels
• C: Roberto Perez | Indians
• 1B: Evan White | Mariners
• 2B: Cesar Hernandez | Indians
• 3B: Isiah Kiner-Falefa | Rangers
• SS: J.P. Crawford | Mariners
• LF: Alex Gordon | Royals
• CF: Luis Robert | White Sox
• RF: Joey Gallo | Rangers

National League

• P: Max Fried | Braves
• C: Tucker Barnhart | Reds
• 1B: Anthony Rizzo | Cubs
• 2B: Kolten Wong | Cardinals
• 3B: Nolan Arenado | Rockies
• SS: Javier Baez | Cubs
• LF: Tyler O’Neill | Cardinals
• CF: Trent Grisham | Padres
• RF: Mookie Betts | Dodgers

As you have noticed, there is not much of a surprise with many of the names in the National League such as Betts, Rizzo, and Arenado. The American League on the other hand has several unfamiliar names and first-time winners.

You might also notice a handful of teammates that won the Gold Glove Award in 2020. The Mariners’ had a young duo win. The Rangers surprised a few fans and took two home. The Indians, Cubs, and Cardinals also had a duo win the Gold Glove.

I have faith in the decision making behind the Gold Glove Awards, but there are a few snubs to note. There are also players that outshined expectations to make the list and some outstanding performances from a couple of the players who blew the competition out of the water.

To start off, I will start with some of the surprising names who won in the American League. And when I say surprising, you would not have thought of them at the beginning of the year.

Evan White, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, and Joey Gallo came out of nowhere to win the Gold Glove. They have the stats to prove their first-ever Gold Glove Awards.

Evan White is a highly touted young prospect for the Seattle Mariners who just finished his first full season for the Mariners as a rookie. White was known for his defense and was a big reason why the Mariners signed him to an extension without making a major league appearance prior to the 2020 season.

White had some tough competition at first base. Yuli Gurriel and Matt Olson were finalists for the Gold Glove Award and Olson is a two-time Gold Glove winner already. As a Mariners fan, I had a feeling that White had a great chance at the Gold Glove after watching him play during the regular season. But for many fans around the league, it might be the first time you have heard of him. Here are some stats to compare:

• Defensive runs saved above average
  • White 7
  • Gurriel 2
  • Olson 5
• Total zone fielding runs above average
  • White 5
  • Gurriel 6
  • Olson -2
• Fielding percentage
  • White 0.998%
  • Gurriel 0.998%
  • Olson 0.998%
• Infield range runs above average
  • White 4
  • Gurriel 1
  • Olson 2
• Plus/minus fielding runs above average
  • White 5 
  • Gurriel 2
  • Olson 3

Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Joey Gallo of the Rangers take home the 3rd base and RF Gold Glove

Who knew Joey Gallo was good at defense? The slugger proved people wrong and came out playing like a stud in right field. His numbers were out of the world and did not give his competition: Clint Frazier and Anthony Santander a chance at winning a Gold Glove.

• Defensive runs saved above average
  • Gallo 12
  • Frazier 4
  • Santander 8
• Plus/minus fielding runs above average
  • Gallo 8
  • Frazier 3
  • Santander 4
• Total zone fielding runs above average
  • Gallo 12
  • Frazier 6
  • Santander 5
• Assists
  • Gallo 3
  • Frazier 1
  • Santander 4

Just look at the difference in numbers for these stats. Yes, I am knit-picking a little but this says a lot already. Santander and Frazier played well, but Gallo gave them absolutely no chance.

Kiner-Falefa also shined at third base for the Rangers. The young utility player out of Hawaii has played third, second, shortstop, and even catcher the past three seasons. In 2020, he was tasked to be the everyday third baseman and he did his part. He, like Gallo and White, might be surprise names for the general MLB fan base unless you were a Mariners and Rangers fan.

• Defensive runs saved above average
  • Kiner-Falefa 8
  • Moncada -1
  • Urshela 7
• Plus/minus fielding runs above average
  • Kiner-Falefa 8
  • Moncada 0
  • Urshela 5
• Infield range runs above average
  • Kiner-Falefa 5
  • Moncada 0
  • Urshela 5
• Infield throwing runs above average
  • Kiner-Falefa 3
  • Moncada 0
  • Urshela -1
• Fielding percentage
  • Kiner-Falefa 0.957%
  • Moncada 0.964%
  • Urshela 0.992%

Urshela of the Yankees gave Kiner-Falefa a run for his money, but as such an underrated name, the Rangers third baseman produced. Gallo, White, and Kiner-Falefa are all young, and will be exciting to see them grow their game on both sides of the game. I expect all three of them to be household names in the Gold Glove Award conversation.

Trent Grisham and Tyler O’Neill are newbies but they had the numbers

Trent Grisham was the first round Brewers selection in 2015, and they might regret trading him to the Padres after watching what he did in 2020. Grisham was traded to the Padres alongside Zach Davies in exchange for Luis Urias and Eric Lauer in 2019.

Grisham became the starting center fielder for the Padres in 2020 and he was outstanding. He had some very tough competition to win the 2020 NL Gold Glove among centerfielders: Cody Bellinger and Ronald Acuna Jr.

• Defensive runs saved above average
  • Grisham 7
  • Acuna Jr. 2
  • Bellinger 5
• Plus/minus fielding runs above average
  • Grisham 6
  • Acuna Jr. 1
  • Bellinger 7
• Total zone fielding runs above average
  • Grisham 9
  • Acuna Jr. 6
  • Bellinger 8
• Assists
  • Grisham 3
  • Acuna Jr. 0
  • Bellinger 1

The centerfield race in the NL was tight, but Grisham deservingly won his first Gold Glove. Grisham also became an important part of the loaded Padres offense, and I expect Grisham to make multiple All-Star appearances in the future. The Gold Glove is just the beginning for him.

Seeing Tyler O’Neill’s name among finalists confused me at first

As a Seattle Mariners fan, all I remember about Tyler O’Neill is his power-hitting ability coming up the ranks as a prospect. O’Neill hit really well while in the Mariners farm system, but Mariners fan never got to see him play in a Mariners uniform. Seattle traded him to the Cardinals for Marco Gonzales which ended up working well for the Mariners.

Now here in 2020, O’Neill received more consistent playtime in the big leagues with the Cardinals. He surprisingly struggled offensively, but his defensive metrics were out of the world. Like I said earlier, O’Neill’s Gold Glove win was a complete surprise to me. He has drastically improved his defense in the outfield since his first call up in 2018. Here is what he did in 2020 compared to the others competing for the left fielder Gold Glove (Shogo Akiyama and David Peralta)

• Defensive runs saved above average
  • O’Neill 9
  • Akiyama 1
  • Peralta 1
• Plus/minus fielding runs above average
  • O’Neill 9
  • Akiyama 3
  • Peralta 0
• Total zone fielding runs above average
  • O’Neill 10
  • Akiyama 1
  • Peralta 5
• Outfield arm runs above average
  • O’Neill 1
  • Akiyama 1
  • Peralta 0

What is even crazier how much O’Neill improved from 2018 and 2019. In his 2019 season as a 24-year-old, he had zero defensive runs saved. He averaged nine more defensive runs saved compared to last season which is a huge difference. O’Neill’s total zone fielding in 2019 was a negative one, compared to his 10 total zone fielding runs above average in 2020.

It will be interesting to see how O’Neill will grow from this huge accomplishment in his young career. The 25-year-old Cardinals outfielder has not figured out his offense quite yet in the big leagues, but he is apparently capable of learning quickly.

Byron Buxton and Carlos Correa should have won

When the AL Gold Glove finalists were announced, I wrote an article about how Kevin Kiermaier was snubbed. The numbers showed that Kiermaier should have been in the running for another Gold Glove Award in 2020. But I still thought Buxton was the best of the group and the favorite to take home the center field Gold Glove trophy. And here we are, Luis Robert wins, who I personally thought was the worst than Kiermaier, Buxton, and Laureano.

Buxton won his first Gold Glove in 2017 and was so good that he ended up winning the Platinum Glove in the same season. This year, he put up some incredible defensive metrics again manning center field for the Twins. Here’s how his numbers stacked up:

• Defensive runs saved above average
  • Buxton 11
  • Robert 8
  • Laureano 5
• Plus/minus fielding runs above average
  • Buxton 8
  • Robert 10
  • Laureano 1
• Outfield arm runs above average
  • Buxton
  • Robert -1
  • Laureano 3
• Total zone fielding runs above average
  • Buxton 8
  • Robert 6
  • Laureano 8
• Good plays/misplays runs above average
  • Buxton 2
  • Robert -1
  • Laureano 1
• Fielding percentage
  • Buxton 1.000%
  • Robert .994%
  • Laureano 1.000%
• Assists
  • Buxton 1
  • Robert 2
  • Laureano 2
• Range factor per game
  • Buxton 2.69
  • Robert 2.73
  • Laureano 2.75

Just by looking at the stats, Buxton seems to be the clear favorite for me, but the votes said otherwise. I am not trying to say Robert was not good defensively, but I think Buxton was better. Maybe voters were enticed by Robert’s rookie hype or something because Buxton has the better defensive metrics hands down.

Astros shortstop Carlos Correa had better metrics

I will come clean, I am a Seattle Mariners fan. So I was obviously cheering for J.P. Crawford to win his first Gold Glove Award, but I even knew what he was going up against. I predicted that Crawford’s chances were slim especially with how good Carlos Correa was on defense in 2020.

Correa had to battle Crawford and Niko Goodrum of the Tigers for the Gold Glove at shortstop. Correa has not won a Gold Glove Award yet and I thought this was his year. Here are the numbers:

• Fielding Percentage
  • Crawford .986%
  • Correa .995%
  • Goodrum .991%
• Defensive Runs Saved Above Average
  • Crawford 6
  • Correa 8
  • Goodrum 3
• Total Zone Fielding Runs Above Average
  • Crawford 7
  • Correa 3
  • Goodrum 5
• Range Factor per Game
  • Crawford 4.11
  • Correa 3.70
  • Goodrum 3.74
• Total Zone Infield Double Play Runs Above Average
  • Crawford 2
  • Correa 1
  • Goodrum 3
• Plus/Minus Fielding Runs Above Average
  • Crawford 4
  • Correa 5
  • Goodrum 3
• Good Plays/Misplays Runs Above Average
  • Crawford 0
  • Correa 2
  • Goodrum -1
• Infield Throwing Runs Above Average
  • Crawford 6
  • Correa 3
  • Goodrum 2

Overall, I think Correa has better metrics but I was clearly wrong. Crawford did have an amazing season as the Mariners shortstop filled with highlight-reel plays, but Correa was just much more solid and should have gone home with his first Gold Glove. But, as a Mariners fan, I am happy with the outcome. As a neutral writer, it doesn’t make sense to me.