Colorado Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado was announced as the winner of the 2016 Rawlings Gold Glove Award. He was selected ahead of Justin Turner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and Anthony Rendon of the Washington Nationals.
Managers and coaches from each team voted for players in their league, but were not permitted to vote for players on their team, to make up 75 percent of the selection process. The Society for American Baseball Research relied on the SABR Defensive Index for the remaining 25 percent.
Arenado is the first third baseman in MLB history to win four consecutive Gold Gloves to begin his career.
This season Arenado led all National League players at his position with 20 Defensive Runs Saved, per FanGraphs. Rendon followed with eight runs saved, and Turner placed third with seven.
Arenado’s .973 fielding percentage tied his career-best mark, previously set during his 2013 rookie season.
In his first full season at third base, Turner led all qualified NL players at the position with a 16.2 defensive rating, per FanGraphs. He was followed by Rendon and Arenado with 12.9 and 8.6, respectively.
In addition, Turner’s 17.2 UZR/150 led all Major League third basemen, with Adrian Beltre’s 13.2 ranking second. Turner committed just nine errors in 316 chances over 1,224.2 innings at third base this season.
His .972 fielding percentage ranked seventh in the Majors among all qualified third basemen. The Dodgers have yet to have a third baseman win the Gold Glove Award. Prior to Turner, Los Angeles was represented by Juan Uribe as a finalist in 2013 and 2014.
