The Gold Glove Award is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball players judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in both the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), as voted by the managers and coaches in each league. [1] Managers are not permitted to vote for their own players. [1] Eighteen Gold Gloves are awarded each year (with the exception of 1957, 1985, 2007 and 2018), one at each of the nine positions in each league. In 1957, the baseball glove manufacturer Rawlings created the Gold Glove Award to commemorate the best fielding performance at each position. [2] The award was created from a glove made from gold lamé-tanned leather and affixed to a walnut base. [3] Initially, only one Gold Glove per position was awarded to the top fielder at each position in the entire league; [2] however, separate awards were given for the National and American Leagues beginning in 1958. [4] [5]
Roberto Alomar leads second basemen in wins; he won 10 Gold Gloves in 11 years with three different American League teams. [6] Ryne Sandberg has the second-highest total overall; his nine awards, all won with the Chicago Cubs, are the most by a National League player. [7] Bill Mazeroski and Frank White are tied for the third-highest total, with eight wins. [8] [9] Mazeroski's were won with the Pittsburgh Pirates, [8] and White won his with the Kansas City Royals. [9] Joe Morgan and Bobby Richardson each won five Gold Glove Awards, [10] [11] and four-time winners include Craig Biggio (who won after converting to second base from catcher), Bret Boone, Bobby Grich, Orlando Hudson, Dustin Pedroia, and Brandon Phillips. [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] Hall of Famers who won Gold Gloves at second base include Alomar, Sandberg, Mazeroski, Morgan, Biggio and Nellie Fox. [7] [8] [10] [12] [18]
Only one winning second baseman has had an errorless season; Plácido Polanco set a record among winners by becoming the first to post a season with no errors and, therefore, a 1.000 fielding percentage. [19] The best mark in the National League was set by Phillips (2010) and Darwin Barney (2012). Both committed three errors and amassed a .996 fielding percentage. [17] [20] Grich has made the most putouts in a season, with 484 in 1974. [14] Fox made 453 putouts and the same number of assists in the award's inaugural season; this is more putouts than any National League player has achieved. [18] Mazeroski and Morgan set the National League mark, with 417 in 1967 and 1973 respectively. [8] [10] Sandberg's 571 assists in 1983 are the most among winners in the major leagues; [7] the American League leader is Grich, who made 509 in 1973. [14] Mazeroski turned the most double plays by a winner, collecting 161 in 1966. [8] The American League leader is Fox (141 double plays in 1957). [18]
Year | Links to the corresponding Major League Baseball season |
PO | Putout |
A | Assist |
E | Error |
DP | Double play |
FPct | Fielding percentage |
* or ** | Winner of the most Gold Glove Awards at his position (** indicates tie) |
† | Member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum |
The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in both the National League (NL) and the American League (AL). Winners are determined from voting by the managers and coaches in each league, who are not permitted to vote for their own players. Additionally, a sabermetric component provided by the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) accounts for about 25 percent of the vote.
William Stanley Mazeroski, nicknamed "Maz" and "The Glove", is an American former second baseman in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played his entire career for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1956 to 1972. A seven-time All-Star known during his career primarily for his spectacular defensive play, he has come to be better known for perhaps the most memorable home run in baseball history, a dramatic ninth-inning drive in Game 7 of the 1960 World Series that beat the favored New York Yankees. It was the first time that the major league season ended with a home run, and remains the only walk-off home run to clinch a World Series championship in Game 7. ESPN ranked the World Series winner at the top of its list of the 100 Greatest Home Runs of All Time, while Sports Illustrated had it eighth in its compilation of the 100 Greatest Moments in Sports History. Mazeroski received the Babe Ruth Award for his play in the Series, during which he batted .320.
Harvey Haddix, Jr. was an American professional baseball left-handed pitcher and pitching coach, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals (1952–1956), Philadelphia Phillies (1956–57), Cincinnati Redlegs (1958), Pittsburgh Pirates (1959–1963), and Baltimore Orioles (1964–65).
Glenn Alfred Beckert was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a second baseman for the Chicago Cubs for nine seasons from 1965 to 1973, before ending his career with the San Diego Padres in 1975. He was a four-time All-Star and a Gold Glove Award winner.
Gabor Paul Bako II is an American former professional baseball catcher. He is an example of a baseball "journeyman", having played for 11 different teams during his 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career. During his playing days, he was listed at 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) and 210 pounds (95 kg).
Tommy Vann Helms is an American former professional baseball player and manager. Over a 14-year Major League Baseball career (1964–1977), Helms played for four teams, including eight seasons with the Cincinnati Reds, four with the Houston Astros, and one each with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Boston Red Sox. He also managed the Reds for part of two seasons (1988–1989). He is the uncle of former Major League player Wes Helms.
The 1960 Major League Baseball season was played from April 12 to October 13, 1960. It was the final season contested by 16 clubs and the final season that a 154-game schedule was played in both the American League and the National League. The AL began using the 162-game schedule the following season, with the NL following suit in 1962.
Members of the original 1957 Rawlings Gold Glove Team: Willie Mays, CF (New York Giants); Al Kaline, RF (Detroit Tigers); Minnie Minoso, LF (Chicago White Sox); Frank Malzone, 3B (Boston Red Sox); Nellie Fox, 2B (Chicago White Sox); Gil Hodges, 1B (Dodgers); Roy McMillan, SS (Cincinnati Reds); Sherm Lollar C (Chicago White Sox); and Bobby Shantz, P (New York Yankees).