The 2019 baseball season may be over but some good news reached Indians fans yesterday. It was announced that catcher Roberto Perez and shortstop Francisco Lindor were each awarded a Gold Glove for their fantastic defensive seasons.
Perez was promoted to full time catching duties this year and flourished in his new role, displaying those elite defensive skills on a daily basis. The 30 year-old ranked second in the majors in caught stealing percentage, gunning down 41% of his would-be thieves. Pérez led every player in the majors in defensive runs saved, with an outstanding 29 (per Fangraphs).
The most remarkable statistic: Pérez wasn't charged with a single passed ball all season. Over 993.2 innings, he didn't let one get past him. He's only the fourth catcher since 1930 to catch as many games as he did without being charged with a passed ball. Just think how reassuring that was for the Indians pitching staff, knowing full well that a bounced curveball wouldn't be punished, never travelling beyond Perez's reach.
I said in my season review it would be a travesty if Perez was overlooked for the award, and thankfully this didn't come to pass, and he was rightfully rewarded. Lindor was confident for his pal all along, and was quoted during the final weekend of the season saying if Pérez “doesn’t win the Gold Glove, then there’s something wrong with the system. And I know the system’s not wrong, so Pérez will win it.”
Frankie is obviously psychic, but he's also a supremely gifted shortstop as well, and collected the second Gold Glove award of his career. Lindor ranked second among AL shortstops in fielding percentage (.979) and second in DRS (defensive runs saved) with a score of 9. Lindor last won the award in 2016, when he also took home the Platinum Glove award as well, awarded to the best defensive player in each league, Lindor winning on behalf of the AL.
Both Perez and Lindor are currently eligible for the 2019 Platinum Glove and fans can have their say by voting here. Help our boys and vote now!
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