When the drawn-out process of announcing the finalists for the annual Rawlings Gold Gloves awards on social media finally finished early Tuesday morning, the Mariners had two players selected among the three best defensive players at their positions.
As expected, Cal Raleigh was named one of three finalists for the American League Gold Glove at catcher while Dylan Moore was also selected as a finalist for the Gold Gove award in the recently created utility player category.
Raleigh was named as a finalist in 2022 while Moore is a first-time finalist.
Raleigh is considered the favorite to win the Gold Glove for American League catchers. He led all of MLB in games caught (135) and innings caught (1,122). But it wasn’t just about volume. He was outstanding behind the plate. For the second straight season, he led MLB in catcher caught stealing, throwing out 26 runners on stolen base attempts. Since the stat was tracked, only Raleigh, Jim Sundberg (1975-76) and Hall of Famer Gary Carter (1982-83) have led MLB in back-to-back seasons.
He led the American League in runs saved in FanGraphs defensive runs above average (23.9) catcher framing (13) and MLB Statcast’s Fielding Run Value above 100 (14) while tying for the lead for defensive runs saved (16).
Joining Raleigh as finalists are Jake Rogers of the Tigers and Freddy Fermin of the Royals.
The ultra-versatile Moore played in 135 games, appearing at six different positions — shortstop (49), third base (45), second base (37), left field (22), first base (11) and center field (1). When regular starting shortstop J.P. Crawford went on the injured list on multiple occasions and second baseman Jorge Polanco dealt with knee and hamstring issues, Moore stepped in as the starter. He started 38 games at shortstop and 24 games at second base. He also served as the right-handed platoon option at third base later in the season. Other finalists for the award including Mauricio Dubon of the Astros and Willi Castro of the Twins.
Third baseman Josh Rojas and center fielder Julio Rodriguez, who were both among the statistical leaders in most defensive categories at their respective positions, were not named to the list.
A high ankle sprain that sent him to the injured list hurt Rodriguez’s candidacy. He still logged the fourth most innings in center in the AL (1,133 1/3) and was fourth in defensive run saved (3), defensive runs above replacement player (4.7) and tied for third in Statcast’s runs above average (8).
Playing as a third baseman, Rojas led the AL in defensive runs saved (7) and was second in FanGraph’s defensive runs above average (7.1) and tied for the AL lead in MLB Statcast’s fielding runs above average (5).
The Gold Glove winners will be announced on Sunday, Nov. 3 on ESPN’s Baseball Tonight.
The awards are presented annually, one for each position, in both the American and National League. The Gold Glove has honored the best defenders at each position since 1957. Major League managers and coaches vote within their league, accounting for 75% of the selection process. The other 25% is conducted by the sabermetrics community.
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