American League Gold Glove Award Winners

Submitted by:  Dan

The postseason baseball awards will be announced after the conclusion of the World Series, but the selections have, for the most part, already been made.  LeRoy in the Afternoon will begin announcing its picks today and continue until the conclusion of the MLB Postseason.  All picks have been discussed, although not all are unanimous among the LeRoy Crew.  Readers should feel free to voice their opinions, anger, and frustration regarding the picks.  We will continue in the American League.

Some of the most disgraceful awards have been given out in the form of American League Gold Gloves over the past two decades.  Perhaps the most notorious was given to Rafael Palmeiro in 1999, who was a Designated Hitter for the Texas Rangers at the time.  But there have been other travesties, including a snub of former Cleveland Indians SS Omar Vizquel, considered by many to be the greatest fielding shortstop of his generation.  There will likely be more disasters in this category this year, but LeRoy in the Afternoon will make you happy with the right picks.

Here they are:

Catcher:  Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins:  Mauer has won the last two Gold Glove Awards at his position in the AL.  There's a reason:  He's the juggernaut, bitch.  Mauer will undoubtedly win a third Gold Glove this season, as he is still the best fielding catcher in the AL.

First Base:  Casey Kotchman, Seattle Mariners:  Kotchman probably won't win because he's not exactly a household name.  But he's a superb fielding first baseman.  In fact, Kotchman is known for his glove work and not his bat.  So he probably should win.  But, like I said, he won't.  Why?  Because he's not a good enough hitter.

Second Base:  Mark Ellis, Oakland Athletics:  Ellis is a guy who has been in Oakland for years.  He's a moneyball-type player whom despotic GM Billy Beane likes.  Since he came on the scene, he has persevered as a good, solid middle infielder.  But it's about time that he got a little recognition for his fielding.  In a league still searching for its next Roberto Alomar, managers and coaches have stopped looking at players like Ellis.  The smart money says that the AL Gold Glove Award for second baseman may go to Robinson Cano of the New York Yankees, which would be a shame of Biblical proportions.  Again, Ellis probably won't win, because he's not a great hitter.

Third Base:  Jhonny Peralta, Detroit Tigers:  Peralta played almost as much at short as he did at third this season for Detroit.  In fact, play at shortstop was so pathetic in the AL this season that I named Peralta as my runner-up offensively at that position.  So how does Peralta win the Gold Glove at third base?  Well, AL shortstops turned in the worst all-around season collectively that I've ever seen.  But fielding at third base this season was overly pathetic, the absolute worst that I've ever seen, at any position, ever.  Go ahead, take a look at the stats.  Three of the starting 14 third basemen in the AL had fielding percentages below .950.  Peralta probably won't win, but he should by default.  I think that maybe the AL should hire Brooks Robinson to teach these guys how to field at the hot corner.

Shortstop:  Derek Jeter, New York Yankees:  Did I mention that shortstop play was terrible in the AL this season?  Well, it just got worse.  Jeter has won four Gold Gloves, he didn't deserve any.  He has no range to his right, can barely throw across the infield, and makes a good amount of errors.  Remember that snub to Vizquel I mentioned earlier?  They snubbed him for Jeter.  It wasn't like shortstop play in the field was terrible in the AL this season, it just wasn't that good.  Jeter will probably win his fifth Gold Glove this season.  He should be winning his first.

Outfielders:  Ah, the dilemma.  To name three center fielders?  To name one left fielder, one center fielder, and one right fielder?  I usually opt for center fielders, but this time I'm making a well-deserved compromise.  CF Vernon Wells of the Toronto Blue Jays, CF Franklin Gutierrez of the Seattle Mariners, and RF Ben Zobrist of the Tampa Bay Rays all turned in flawless seasons in the outfield in the AL this season.  Wells and Gutierrez are no-doubters.  I wouldn't normally vote for a player like Zobrist, a natural infielder-turned utility player-turned outfielder.  But he didn't make any errors this season.

Pitcher:  RHP Jerad Weaver, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim:  When I went looking for the link for Weaver's profile I scrolled to the bottom of the Angels' roster.  Did you know that there are three people lower alphabetically than Weaver on the Angels' roster?  After scrolling all the way down, I had to move my cursor four slots up.  All that to name the best fielding pitcher in the AL.  He didn't make any errors.

Coming Tomorrow:  American League Hank Aaron Award Winner