The finalists for the 2022 Rawlings Gold Glove Awards, which are given to the top fielder at each position for the American League and National League, were announced Thursday afternoon in a press release from the Rawlings Sporting Good Company and in conjunction with Major League Baseball.
Catcher Cal Raleigh was the lone Mariners representative among the AL finalists. Raleigh is one of three finalists for the AL catcher Gold Glove along with Oakland’s Sean Murphy and Jose Trevino of the Yankees.
In his first full MLB season, Raleigh blossomed into Seattle’s everyday catcher of the future in 2022. After struggling and being sent down to Class AAA Tacoma on April 27, he was recalled on May 7 when catcher Tom Murphy reinjured his left shoulder.
With a reset to his approach and an understanding he would get the bulk of the playing time, Raleigh established himself as a quality defensive catcher that the Mariners pitching staff trusted with his preparation and performance behind the plate. He also smashed 27 homers, which was more than any catcher in MLB. Per Fangraphs’ Wins Above Replacement (fWAR), Raleigh was worth 4.2 wins, which was fourth-highest among all catchers in MLB.
From a defensive standpoint, Raleigh scored an 18.1 in Fangraphs’ defensive value measure in 917 innings caught with Sean Murphy just ahead of him with an 18.3 in 1,004 innings behind the plate. Trevino had a 29.1 rating, but only caught 820 1/3 innings. Raleigh ranked third in the AL in defensive runs saved with 14 and fifth in pitch-framing score (8.2).
While the Gold Glove awards were first handed out in 1957 by Rawlings, the move to having three finalists at each position before announcing a winner came in 2011. This year the company added utility players as a position to win the award.
“The 2022 Rawlings Gold Glove Award finalists perfectly represent an unforgettable and exciting season of baseball marked by amazing displays of defense,” said Mike Thompson, chief marketing officer of Rawlings, said in a press release. “Rawlings congratulates all of the deserving finalists, and we can’t wait to name the next class of winners deemed ‘the Finest in the Field.’”
Per the press release, “To determine the winners of the 18 defensive position awards, each team’s manager and up to six coaches on his staff vote from a pool of qualified players in their League and cannot vote for players from their own team. In 2013, Rawlings added the SABR Defensive Index (SDI) to the Rawlings Gold Glove Award selection process, which comprises approximately 25 percent of the overall selection total, with the managers’ and coaches’ votes continuing to carry the majority.”
The winner of the Gold Glove Awards will be announced on Nov. 1 at 2 p.m. PT, just before Game 4 of the World Series, during a special one-hour broadcast of ESPN’s “Baseball Tonight.”
American League finalists
Pitcher
- José Berríos, Toronto Blue Jays
- Shane Bieber, Cleveland Guardians
- Jameson Taillon, New York Yankees
Catcher
- Jose Trevino, New York Yankees
- Cal Raleigh, Seattle Mariners
- Sean Murphy, Oakland Athletics
First base
- Anthony Rizzo, New York Yankees
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blue Jays
- Luis Arraez, Minnesota Twins
Second base
- Jonathan Schoop, Detroit Tigers
- Marcus Semien, Texas Rangers
- Andrés Giménez, Cleveland Guardians
Third base
- Matt Chapman, Toronto Blue Jays
- Ramón Urías, Baltimore Orioles
- José Ramírez, Cleveland Guardians
Shortstop
- Xander Bogaerts, Boston Red Sox
- Jeremy Peña, Houston Astros
- Carlos Correa, Minnesota Twins
Left field
- Brandon Marsh, Los Angeles Angels/Philadelphia Phillies
- Andrew Benintendi, Kansas City Royals/New York Yankees
- Steven Kwan, Cleveland Guardians
Center field
- Myles Straw, Cleveland Guardians
- Cedric Mullins , Baltimore Orioles
- Michael A. Taylor, Kansas City Royals
Right field
- Max Kepler, Minnesota Twins
- Jackie Bradley Jr., Boston Red Sox/Toronto Blue Jays
- Kyle Tucker, Houston Astros
Utility
- Whit Merrifield, Kansas City Royals/Toronto Blue Jays
- DJ LeMahieu, New York Yankees
- Luis Rengifo, Los Angeles Angels
National League finalists
Pitcher
- Max Fried, Atlanta Braves
- Tyler Anderson, Los Angeles Dodgers
- Corbin Burnes, Milwaukee Brewers
Catcher
- Tomás Nido, New York Mets
- Travis d’Arnaud, Atlanta Braves
- J.T. Realmuto, Philadelphia Phillies
First base
- Matt Olson, Atlanta Braves
- Paul Goldschmidt, St. Louis Cardinals
- Christian Walker, Arizona Diamondbacks
Second base
- Tommy Edman, St. Louis Cardinals
- Brendan Rodgers, Colorado Rockies
- Jake Cronenworth, San Diego Padres
Third base
- Nolan Arenado, St. Louis Cardinals
- Ryan McMahon, Colorado Rockies
- Ke’Bryan Hayes, Pittsburgh Pirates
Shortstop
- Ha-Seong Kim, San Diego Padres
- Dansby Swanson, Atlanta Braves
- Miguel Rojas, Miami Marlins
Left field
- Ian Happ, Chicago Cubs
- David Peralta, Arizona Diamondbacks/Tampa Bay Rays
- Christian Yelich, Milwaukee Brewers
Center field
- Victor Robles, Washington Nationals
- Trent Grisham, San Diego Padres
- Alek Thomas, Arizona Diamondbacks
Right field
- Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers
- Juan Soto, Washington Nationals/San Diego Padres
- Daulton Varsho, Arizona Diamondbacks
Utility
- Brendan Donovan, St. Louis Cardinals
- Tommy Edman, St. Louis Cardinals
- Daulton Varsho, Arizona Diamondbacks