Just A Bit Outside

The Gold Glove awards are often a joke—players usually win on name recognition (or offensive ability) more than actual defensive ability. That's partly because there isn't a widely-accepted defensive statistic to measure fielding ability.

However, there is a stat out there that is extremely useful for evaluating defense. Ultimate Zone Rating (UZR) takes into account a player's range and errors and converts those into run values. So, for example, a player with a 6.0 UZR prevents six runs from scoring with his defense, while a player with a -6.0 UZR allows runs to score because of his defense.

That's just a basic definition of UZR, but it's pretty wide accepted in the sabermetric community and by a number of MLB teams, from what I understand. So, that being said, here's a look at what my Gold Glove ballot would look like:

1B, AL: Kendry Morales, Los Angeles. His current 3.2 UZR is best among first baseman who have played all year in the American League (Casey Kotchman has a 6.5 UZR but has split time between Atlanta and Boston this year).

1B, NL: Adrian Gonzalez, San Diego. His 4.4 UZR is over a run and a half higher than second-place Ryan Howard, who has a 2.8 UZR.

2B, AL: Dustin Pedroia, Boston. His 12.6 UZR still could be overtaken by Placido Polanco (11.5 UZR) before the year is out, but Pedroia's defense is a huge part in what makes him such a valuable player.

2B, NL: Chase Utley, Philadelphia. Utley's 10.6 UZR narrowly edges Felipe Lopez' 10.1.

3B, AL: Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay. Longoria is fast becoming one of baseball's best players, and his 16.4 UZR is a huge reason why. Side note: Chone Figgins and Adrian Beltre rank second and third among AL third basemen in UZR, and both should be rewarded handsomely in the free agent market for it (Figgins will, but Beltre could be a huge bargain).

3B, NL: Ryan Zimmerman, Washington. Zimmerman's 17.9 UZR is by far the best of any third baseman in baseball. He often gets overlooked because of where he plays, but Zimmerman really is one of baseball's better players.

SS, AL: Elvis Andrus, Texas. My pick for AL Rookie of the Year has a 8.2 UZR, tops among full-season AL shortstops. (Like Kotchman, Jack Wilson gets the shaft because he's played in both leagues this year).

SS, NL: Rafael Furcal, Los Angeles. His 8.2 UZR has been a big part in the Dodgers' success this year. Another side note: JJ Hardy, who was demoted by Milwaukee for poor offense earlier in the year, has baseball's fourth-best UZR among shortstops at 7.6

OF, AL: Franklin Gutierrez, Seattle; Ryan Sweeney, Oakland; David DeJesus, Kansas City. Gutierrez has maybe been baseball's most underrated player this year, as his sparkling defense in center for Seattle was a huge part of the Mariners' pitching staff having some sort of success this year. Don't believe me? Ask Jarrod Washburn. Gutierrez' has a 24.7 UZR while Sweeney is at 20.5 and DeJesus 18.3.

OF, NL: Nyjer Morgan, Pittsburgh/Washington; Randy Winn, San Francisco; Mike Cameron, Milwaukee. Nyjer Morgan has been one of baseball's most valuable players this year, and his 27.6 UZR is just as important as his offensive production. Seeing the aging Winn here surprised me, but his 15.6 UZR doesn't lie. Cameron has always been a defensive stalwart, and his 11.3 rating this year is par for the course.

C, AL: Joe Mauer, Twins. There's no UZR rating for catchers, so this is the most subjective I can get here.

C, NL: Yadier Molina, Cardinals. Again, I feel like I'm pulling a cop out by picking a well-known player here, but this just demonstrates the problem most voters have without a stat to gauge defense.