CLEVELAND, OH – The Rawlings Sporting Goods Company tonight announced the recipients of the 2019 Rawlings Gold Glove Awards on MLB Network. For the first time since 2001, a pair of Cleveland Indians captured Rawlings Gold Gloves as C ROBERTO PÉREZ garnered his first career award and SS FRANCISCO LINDOR won for the second time.
Pérez compiled a franchise record .997 fielding percentage (3 errors/1137 total chances) in 2019 and did not record a passed ball in 118 games and 993.2 innings behind the plate, just the fourth catcher since at least 1930 with at least 118 games caught without a passed ball. His 29 Defensive Runs Saved outpaced all other Major League catchers by at least 17 runs and was the second-highest total by a catcher since Baseball Info Solutions (BIS) began tracking the metric in 2003. He recorded an American League-best 40.8% (20-for-49) caught stealing pct. as Indians pitchers yielded the third-fewest stolen bases (53) in MLB. His 3.9 bWAR ranked third among Major League catchers and fifth on the club. He was fourth in MLB in innings caught.
Lindor, who captured the Rawlings Platinum Glove Award in 2016, ranked second among American League shortstops in fielding pct. (.979, 10 errors/481 total chances) and Defensive Runs Saved. He recorded just five errors in 74 second half games and finished second on the club with a 4.7 bWAR.
The voting, which was conducted in late September, is a compilation of votes among Major League coaches and managers and members of SABR (Society for American Baseball Research).