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Colorado Rockies: Why Trevor Story was not among Gold Glove finalists

By Ryan Ladika |
DENVER, CO - MAY 25: Trevor Story #27 of the Colorado Rockies throws to second base on a double play to force out Tucker Barnhart #16 of the Cincinnati Reds in the seventh inning at Coors Field on May 25, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. Colorado won 5-4. (Photo by Joe Mahoney/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - MAY 25: Trevor Story #27 of the Colorado Rockies throws to second base on a double play to force out Tucker Barnhart #16 of the Cincinnati Reds in the seventh inning at Coors Field on May 25, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. Colorado won 5-4. (Photo by Joe Mahoney/Getty Images)
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DENVER, CO – JULY 10: Trevor Story #27 of the Colorado Rockies adjusts his cap while heading to the field prior to the start of the fourth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Coors Field on July 10, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO – JULY 10: Trevor Story #27 of the Colorado Rockies adjusts his cap while heading to the field prior to the start of the fourth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Coors Field on July 10, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) /

After a disappointing sophomore season in 2017, Colorado Rockies shortstop Trevor Story broke out in a huge way in 2018, establishing himself as one of the best young shortstops in baseball. He earned a trip to his first career All-Star Game, and capitalized on the opportunity by hitting a solo home run off Houston Astros reliever Charlie Morton.

Colorado Rockies fans were hoping he’d get some recognition for the step forward he’s taken this season, both offensively and defensively. That recognition is going to have to wait a little bit longer.

The three finalists for the Rawlings Gold Glove awards at each position in both leagues were announced early Thursday afternoon and, while Nolan Arenado and DJ LeMahieu both earned spots among them for their respective positions, Story was left out.

Interestingly enough, the three nominees for NL shortstop all came from the National League West.

Is Trevor Story the fourth-best defensive shortstop in the NL West? Let’s take a deeper look.

PHOENIX, AZ – MARCH 31: Trevor Story #27 of the Colorado Rockies makes the force out on A.J. Pollock #11 of the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first inning of the MLB game at Chase Field on March 31, 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images)
PHOENIX, AZ – MARCH 31: Trevor Story #27 of the Colorado Rockies makes the force out on A.J. Pollock #11 of the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first inning of the MLB game at Chase Field on March 31, 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images) /

Over the course of the 2018 season, Story played 1372.2 defensive innings at shortstop. The three finalists for the Gold Glove, Nick Ahmed, Freddy Galvis and Brandon Crawford, all played 1239.2, 1401.0 and 1259.0 innings, respectively.

In those 1372.2 innings, Story’s defensive numbers are surprisingly pedestrian for a player who routinely made flashy diving stops and barehand, jump and spin throws look relatively easy.

https://twitter.com/Rockies/status/1023026342105767936

He had 0 DRS (defensive runs saved) this year, down from his 11 last season. His UZR (ultimate zone rating) was -2.2, also down from his 1.7 in 2017. His .981 fielding percentage was good for seventh in baseball, tied with the Braves’ Dansby Swanson and behind both Ahmed and Galvis. For comparison, Ahmed’s 21 DRS and 4.6 UZR, Galvis’ 7 DRS, and Crawford’s 7 DRS and -0.9 UZR were all better.

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Fangraphs reports RZR (revised zone rating), a stat that measures the proportion of balls hit into a fielder’s zone that he successfully converted for an out (Fangraphs Sabermetrics Library). Story ranked 11th in baseball with a .777 RZR. That left him behind all three NL shortstop finalists.

The site also reports defensive runs above average (DEF) as a way to measure a player’s total defensive value relative to league average (0). It uses other defensive metrics like DRS and UZR, and 9-10 runs of DEF equals about one win of value. Story’s 4.8 DEF was good for 15th in baseball, behind Crawford’s 5.5 and Ahmed’s 11.0. Galvis ranked 19th in that category with 2.8.

Story also committed 12 errors this season, more than Ahmed and Galvis, who both committed nine, but fewer than Crawford’s 16.

On the other hand, he did turn 43 double plays, which was good for third in baseball behind Ahmed and AL finalist Andrelton Simmons. Of course, that partially depends on the pitching staff’s ability to induce ground balls, but it shouldn’t be discounted completely.

Next. Watch Trevor Story make a great catch ... then explain to us what he was thinking on the play. dark

Story certainly took a very large step forward this season, and he made some incredible defensive plays. Based on the numbers, though, the Gold Glove snub isn’t nearly as big as some others we’ve seen throughout this season. It’s not a knock on Story. The three that made it are just more deserving.

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