Colorado Rockies: Arenado, LeMahieu win Gold Glove honors

Coors Field can diminish offensive accomplishments in the eyes of voters, but it can’t take defense away for the Colorado Rockies.

After having stellar seasons on the defensive side of the ball, Colorado Rockies superstar third baseman Nolan Arenado and second baseman DJ LeMahieu won Gold Glove honors at their respective positions for their efforts on Tuesday night.

Outfielder Gerardo Parra lost to Marcell Ozuna and missed snagging his third career award.

This latest award represents Arenado’s fifth consecutive Gold Glove, one for every year he’s spent in the big leagues.

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Arenado played arguably his best defensive season yet, committing a career-low nine errors and turning a career-high-tying 39 double plays. He finished with a career-best .979 fielding percentage in 1343.1 innings. He also saved an additional 20 runs over an average third baseman, according to FanGraphs.

There was no shortage of vintage Arenado highlight-reel plays, as well. Among the standouts were this diving play from a Kyle Freeland start in San Francisco and this incredible throw from foul territory in Kansas City.

In a down year offensively coming off of his first career National League batting title, second baseman DJ LeMahieu made up for it in the field, winning Gold Glove honors for the second time in his career, as well as his first career Fielding Bible award.

In 1302.0 innings at second base this season, LeMahieu turned 106 double plays and posted a .989 fielding percentage after committing just eight errors. Additionally, he saved eight additional runs over an average second baseman, according to FanGraphs.

Finally, despite missing out on the award, outfielder Gerardo Parra enjoyed a bounceback year after a 2016 season that saw him spend extended time on the disabled list.

Routinely making highlight-reel quality diving plays, such as this diving catch that saved a Kyle Freeland no-hitter, Parra played a spectacular outfield, committing only two errors in 832.0 innings. He had multiple opportunities to showcase his arm, contributing nine outfield assists as well.

The two Gold Glove awards represent an ongoing trend for the usually-strong defensive Rockies. Colorado as a team committed the third-fewest errors in baseball this season, making only 77 miscues and ending up tied for second in baseball with a .987 fielding percentage. The Rockies have now won 12 total Gold Gloves since 2010, as well.

Next: Coors Field bias cost Nolan and Chuck Nazty in the MVP voting

Colorado will need the trend to continue in 2018, as the Rockies will try to build off of a strong Wild Card-clinching 2017 season.

Coors Field can diminish offensive accomplishments in the eyes of voters, but it can’t take defense away for the Colorado Rockies.

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