The St. Louis Cardinals have only two finalists: the third baseman and shortstop. Michael Siani, the center fielder, did not make the cut.The St. Louis Cardinals have only two finalists: the third baseman and shortstop. Michael Siani, the center fielder, did not make the cut.
Rawlings released the Gold Glove finalists on Tuesday of this week, and the St. Louis Cardinals have three players in contention. The team’s only finalists for this year’s Gold Glove competition are third baseman Nolan Arenado, utility player Brendan Donovan, and shortstop Masyn Winn.
The most prominent exclusion is center fielder Michael Siani. Despite previous reports that Michael Siani was ineligible for the honor, Katie Woo of The Athletic clarified that he would be eligible based on his total innings played. Jacob Young of the Washington Nationals, Brenton Doyle of the Colorado Rockies, and Blake Perkins of the Milwaukee Brewers are the contenders for center field over Michael Siani. Siani’s 15 Outs Above Average (OAA) ranked third in the National League among center fielders, while his eight Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) matched for sixth. Siani didn’t make a mistake all year.
Nolan Arenado will compete for the Gold Glove at third base against Ryan McMahon of the Colorado Rockies and Matt Chapman of the San Francisco Giants. Arenado’s six defensive runs saved trail Chapman’s 11 by two, as do his nine outs over average. Arenado, a once-dominant defensive force at third base, has stepped back. Arenado was a far inferior defender in 2023, but he appears to have improved this season. He made a total of nine errors this year.
Masyn Winn, a rookie shortstop for the Cardinals, has been a defensive stud all season and deserves this praise. He’ll go off against Ezequiel Tovar of the Colorado Rockies and Dansby Swanson of the Chicago Cubs. Winn lags both in OAA, with three to Tovar’s 15 and Swanson’s 18. He leads in DRS, with 14 to Tovar’s nine and Swanson’s seven. Winn’s 18 mistakes will undermine his argument.
Brendan Donovan is once again a finalist for the utility position; he won the honor in its first year in 2022. He will face Kike Hernandez of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Jared Triolo of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Donovan had zero DRS and six OAA between second, left, right, and third base, compared to Jared Triolo’s nine DRS and three OAA at second, third, right, first, and shortstop. Kike Hernandez concluded the year with five DRS and two OAA from six positions. Donovan’s argument is bolstered by the fact that he made only two errors entire year, compared to Triolo’s three and Hernandez’s 10.
