Dansby Swanson was one of four Braves named a Gold Glove finalist. The soon-to-be free agent was a first-time All-Star and now wins his first career Gold Glove in a contract year; honestly, you couldn’t write it up any better for a player looking to cash in.
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Swanson beats out Ha-Seong Kim of the Padres and Miguel Rojas of the Marlins. According to Fangraphs, Rojas led NL shortstops with 15 defensive runs saved, followed by Kim (10) and Swanson (9). However, Swanson was second to only Jonathan Schoop in all of baseball in outs above average at 21.
According to Rawlings’ Gold Glove selection criteria, the winner at each position was determined by a combination of votes from managers and coaches (75%) as well as the SABR Defensive Index (25%), which is a “measure of the number of runs saved by a player’s defensive performance over the course of a season, compared to the average defensive player at that position.” The SABR Defensive Index takes into account defensive aspects such as range, sure-handedness and ability to turn double plays, among other metrics, when evaluating shortstops.
Through Aug. 28, Swanson (6.5) was third in SABR Defensive Index rankings — the final SABR Defensive Index rankings are not yet public. Regardless, entering free agency, Dansby Swanson couldn’t have hoped for a better contract year. It was the best season of his career, and he’ll be paid handsomely this winter.
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