Boston’s Black Knight racks up the first of many accolades due to him from 2018.
MLB really promotes the home run during the regular season, but as we saw in the playoffs, defensive gems are just as valuable as the long ball. The 2018 Gold Glove winners were announced Sunday, handing out hardware to the best defensive players in baseball and the World Champion Red Sox have three 2018 Gold Glovers, led by right fielder Mookie Betts who should be receiving his MVP Award soon as well.
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Centerfield wizard Jackie Bradley Jr and second baseman Ian Kinsler also took home Gold Gloves. It’s unlikely that a squad is winning a World Series title without having a few Gold Glove winners.
Overall, 12 out of 19 awards came from players on playoff teams.
Here is the full list of winners:
National League
P: Zack Greinke, Arizona Diamondbacks
C: Yadier Molina, St. Louis Cardinals
1B: Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves/Anthony Rizzo, Chicago Cubs
2B: DJ LeMahieu, Colorado Rockies
3B: Nolan Arenado, Colorado Rockies
SS: Nick Ahmed, Arizona Diamondbacks
LF: Corey Dickerson, Pittsburgh Pirates
CF: Ender Inciarte, Atlanta Braves
RF: Nick Markakis, Atlanta Braves
American League
P: Dallas Keuchel, Houston Astros
C: Salvador Perez, Kansas City Royals
1B: Matt Olson, Oakland Athletics
2B: Ian Kinsler, Boston Red Sox
3B: Matt Chapman, Oakland Athletics
SS: Andrelton Simmons, Los Angeles Angels
LF: Alex Gordon, Kansas City Royals
CF: Jackie Bradley Jr., Boston Red Sox
RF: Mookie Betts, Boston Red Sox
Betts has no real competition for AL MVP and in the NL, the favorite is Colorado third baseman Nolan Arenado, who won his sixth straight Gold Glove. Boston’s success and Betts’ all-around greatness, which included a rare 30-30 season makes him the baseball’s most impactful player this season.
#OTD in 1997, @Mariners Ken Griffey Jr. is named the unanimous winner of the AL MVP Award. https://t.co/C01NYoaEQZ pic.twitter.com/0GebEzEr2Y
— National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum ⚾ (@baseballhall) November 12, 2017
When Betts receives his long overdue MVP award, he will become the first African-American American League player to win the MVP since young Ken Griffey Jr. did it for the Seattle Mariners in 1997.
