Dodgers: Two Gold Glove Finalist Come up Short

The MLB announced the winners of the 2017 Gold Glove winners and unfortunately the two Dodgers nominees came up short.

The Dodgers had two finalists for up for a Gold Glove Award. Corey Seager was going up against Brandon Crawford and Freddy Galvis for the shortstop award. Yasiel Puig was going up against Jason Heyward and Giancarlo Stanton.

Unfortunately for Seager and Puig, neither were able to come away with the award as they fell short to the competition. Brandon Crawford took home the shortstop Gold Glove for the third straight season, and Jason Heyward won the Right Field Gold Glove for the fourth consecutive season.

The bigger shock here for Dodger fans was that Puig got snugged for his first ever Gold Glove award. Puig played outstanding defense all season and led the competition in every important defensive metric. Puig only committed one error on the season and had four outfield assists. He was tied with Heyward for defensive runs saved with 18.

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Seager was a long shot to beat out Crawford. Since coming into the league, Crawford has been one of the best defensive shortstops in the league. It’s no surprise that he already has three Rawlings Gold Gloves. Crawford led the position with a 13.2 Defensive Runs Above Average (DEF) and was third in fielding percentage at his position (.982).

Corey Seager isn’t known for his defensive abilities. He’s one of the bigger shortstops in the league and tends to have a difficult time getting to balls in the third base hole. Despite not winning the award, Seager still plays above average defense up the middle. This season he wasn’t 100% dealing with elbow issues the final two months of the season.

I’m not as upset about Seager getting snubbed for the award than I am that his elbow is still not healthy. In a press conference earlier today, Andrew Friedman said the Dodgers are hopeful that Seager’s elbow could heal without surgery.

The fact that Puig didn’t get the award really is disappointing for Dodger fans. There wasn’t a game where Puig didn’t electrify the crowd by making a diving play or showing off his arm. Puig’s defensive metrics could be better if baserunners actually challenged him. The respect Puig garnishes on the field is second to none. It really is a shame that Puig didn’t get the award.

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The last Dodger to win a Gold Glove was Zack Greinke who won back in 2014 and 2015. Next year I look for Chris Taylor, Cody Bellinger, and Yasiel Puig to be in the Gold Glove discussion.