Statistically, the Seattle Mariners played the best defense in major league baseball history last season.
Tuesday, they backed it up with four Gold Glove winners.
First baseman John Olerud, second baseman Bret Boone, center fielder Mike Cameron and right fielder Ichiro Suzuki each won a Gold Glove as the best defensive players at their positions in the American League.
The AL team also includes pitcher Mike Mussina of the Yankees, catcher Bengie Molina of the Angels, third baseman Eric Chavez of the A’s, shortstop Alex Rodriguez of the Rangers and outfielder Torii Hunter of the Twins.
The Mariners became the first AL team with four Gold Glove winners since the 1975 Baltimore Orioles with third baseman Brooks Robinson, shortstop Mark Belanger, second baseman Bobby Grich and center fielder Paul Blair.
“I said it from the beginning of the year that it’s the best defensive team I’ve ever played on,” Boone said.
The Mariners made just 65 errors in 2003 and broke the major league record of 70 by the 1999 New York Mets. The common thread on those teams is Olerud, who also won Gold Gloves in 2000 with the Mets and 2002 with the Mariners.
“This guy makes you look better than people know,” Boone said. “I make throws sometimes that are off the bag and he reaches them like it hits him in the chest. Johnny doesn’t get a lot of credit, but he’s a huge part of what we do as a defensive infield.”
Boone continued to flourish as one of baseball’s best all-around players, committing seven errors in 701 chances for a .990 fielding percentage that tied the Angels’ Adam Kennedy for first place in the American League. Boone, who won a Gold Glove in 2002 with the Mariners, also hit 35 home runs and drove in 117 runs, and last week won a Silver Slugger award as the league’s best offensive player at his position.
“For Boonie to get the Silver Slugger and the Gold Glove in one year, that’s MVP-type stuff,” Mariners manager Bob Melvin said. “Being a middle infielder who produces offensively, he’s doing what A-Rod and very few other players are able to do.”
Major league managers and coaches voted for both the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards.
“It’s a flattering feeling to me that these guys voted for me in both categories,” said Boone, who also won a Gold Glove with the Mariners in 2002 and 1998 with the Cincinnati Reds. “I take a lot of pride in my defense. As much as offense is talked about, and you’re pretty much judged offensively, I take a lot of pride in my defense. I want to be one of the best in the game up the middle.”
Cameron, who won his second Gold Glove, is a free agent this offseason and might not return to the Mariners. He finished 2003 with a .992 fielding percentage, third-best in the AL, and more fielding chances, 492, than any center fielder in the league.
“He has that extra level to make the special play,” Melvin said.
Suzuki led American League right fielders with just two errors and 12 assists, an amazing number to Melvin considering opposing teams are leery about running on his strong arm.
“In my mind, he’s the best right fielder in baseball,” Melvin said. “It seems like every time you ran on him, he threw you out.”
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
