It’s the start of the awards season. On Tuesday night, the MLB revealed the winners of the 2012 class. We’ll start off with the American League…
American League Winners
Catcher: Baltimore Orioles’ Matt Wieters. No surprise here. Wieters wins his second straight Gold Glove and keeps climbing the charts as one of the best defensive catchers in the AL.
First base: New York Yankees’ Mark Teixeira claims his fifth Gold Glove. His third in the last four year. His offense may come and go, but his defensive skills are some of the best.
Second base: New York Yankees’ Robinson Cano wins his second Gold Glove award. The Yankees’ second baseman is one of the best in the game with his glove. Whether it’s his range or arm strength a deserving winner for sure.
Shortstop: Baltimore Orioles’ J.J. Hardy finally wins a Gold Glove. Hardy has been one of the better defensive shortstops in baseball over the last few years. This year, he finally earned his first of what should be many Gold Gloves.
Third base: Texas Rangers’ Adrian Beltre’ has his fourth Gold Glove — second straight to put on his mantle. Beltre has been one of the better defensive third basemen, and him winning his second straight Glove Glove should be really no surprise.
Left field: Moving Alex Gordon out of the infield has worked out well for the Kansas City Royals. Gordon now has his second straight Gold Glove. His arm is pretty good, too.
Center field: Baltimore Orioles’ Adam Jones wins his second Gold Glove. Can’t say I totally agree with this decision, but congratulations to him.
Right field: Oakland Athletics’ Josh Reddick now can say he has won a Gold Glove. Winning his first of his career and becoming the first right fielder for the A’s to win one since Dwayne Murphy in 1987.
Pitcher: Chicago White Sox’s Jake Peavy and Toronto Blue Jays’ Jeremy Hellickson tied for a Gold Glove. It’s the first time since 2007 there was a tie in the Gold Glove voting for pitchers.
National League Winners
Catcher: If I have to explain why St. Louis Cardinals’ Yadier Molina won his fifth straight Gold Glove, you must live under a rock.
First base: Washington Nationals’ Adam LaRoche won his first Gold Glove award on Tuesday night. LaRoche not only had a good year with the glove, but should get some MVP votes as well.
Second base: Chicago Cubs’ Darwin Barney won his first of what should be many Gold Gloves. No one one was as consistent as Barney was this past season. Barney nearly broke the all time record for games without an error by a second basemen.
Shortstop: Philadelphia Phillies’ Jimmy Rollins will have another piece of hardware to add to his collection. Rollins won his fourth Gold Glove == his first since 2009. At least Phillies fans have something to be happy about, right?
Third base: Chase Headley had an outstanding 2012 campaign. Although, the San Diego Padres weren’t that good, Headly will at least get something to remember his 2012 season by.
Left field: Colorado Rockies’ Carlos Gonzales won his second Gold Glove. The left fielder posses one of the best throwing arms in the game and is like a vacuum in the spacious outfield of Coors Field.
Center field: Pittsburgh Pirates’ Andrew McCutchen now can say he is a Gold Glove winner. One of the top contenders for the National League Most Valuable Player award put up outstanding numbers in the 2012 season. He may have a MVP trophy next to his Gold Glove by the end of this year.
Right field: It was a comeback season for the young Atlanta Braves’ right fielder. Jason Heyward won his first Gold Glove, and will probably win many more by the time his career is over.
Pitcher: New league, same result. Miami Marlins’ Mark Buehrle wins his fourth straight Gold Glove.
