Jacob Stallings and Adam Frazier Earn Gold Glove Nominations
Every year, Major League Baseball awards the best defenders in the league at every position with the Gold Glove Award. Last season, the Pittsburgh Pirates had one Gold Glove finalist in Adam Frazier, who finished in third place in voting. This season, the Pirates have doubled their nominees with Frazier being nominated for a second straight year at second base while Jacob Stallings earned his first career Gold Glove Award nomination at catcher. With the team putting more of a focus on the defensive side of the game, their efforts are already beginning to pay off. With good defense, their is less stress on both the offense and pitching and can lead the Pirates to being a more competitive team.
In a season where there wasn't much success in terms of on-field play, these individual awards become that much more important. Neither Frazier or Stallings are going to be household names, but their hard work and good play is being recognized by their fellow players and coaches. It also gives both players some much needed confidence as they step up as leaders for the team next season, or trade bait for the Pirates to use this off-season in the case of Frazier. Both players have essentially come out of nowhere and become everyday started for the Pirates and now, are using their defensive skills to turn into guys that are recognizable throughout the league.
Adam Frazier: Second Base
Last season, Adam Frazier earned his first National League Gold Glove award nomination as a second baseman. He had a fielding percentage of .989 and committed six errors over 1180.2 innings of work. However, he had some stiff competition at the position and ended up finishing third in voting behind Atlanta's Ozzie Albies and St. Louis's Kolten Wang. For a guy who was used to being a utility man for most of his Major League career, it was nice to see him be able to slip into a full-time role and not only play well, but be named one of the best at his position defensively in the MLB.
He took his defensive game to the next level in 2020 and improved in every aspect of his defensive game. He committed just one error at second base in 343 innings at the position while posting a .994 fielding percentage. He recorded 63 putouts and 90 assists during the season while leading the team with 24 double plays turned during the season. Their were rumors swirling all off-season that the Pirates were going to trade the second baseman, but once he entered Pirates camp he was a lock to start at second base. He started every game leading up to the August 31st trade deadline at second base and played in all but two games this season.
If Frazier wants to win his first career Gold Glove award, he is going to have to take down a familiar opponent. St. Louis's Kolten Wong is once again a finalist for the award and the Chicago Cubs's Nico Hoerner rounds out the field. While Wong continues to play great defense, Frazier led all second basemen this season with an Outs Above Average of +6. Frazier seems to have a better chance at the award this season then he did last season and winning the award can help both Frazier and the Pirates. For Frazier, it would be a big confidence boost for him as a second baseman and for the Pirates it will either add to his trade value, or give the team an anchor at second base for the future.
Jacob Stallings: Catcher
Looking at the 2020 Pittsburgh Pirates, Jacob Stallings is one of the true underdog success stories. The Pirates entered the season with uncertainty behind the plate, and Stallings answered most of those questions, showing he can be an everyday starter at the Major League level. He had never made an MLB Opening Day roster before this season and, at age 30, he just played his first full season in the MLB. For the most part, he stayed healthy throughout the season minus a concussion that would end his year just a few days early. Stallings was always noted for his pitch framing ability, but one area where he really impressed was his ability to control base runners.
During the year Stallings set down 33.3% of base runners (9-27) setting a new career-high at the Major League level. Lost in all of Stallings pitch framing accolades is his arm strength and quickness in getting the ball out of his hand. He has a pop time of under two seconds to both second base and third base meaning if the runner did not have a good jump, Stallings will most likely nab them. Another area where Stallings excelled in 2020 was in defensive runs saved. Out of all Major League catchers, Stallings ranked second with seven defensive runs saved behind the plate according to statcast.
The man who is ahead of him in Defensive runs saved is also on the National League Gold Glove ballot, the Reds Tucker Barnhart. Wilson Contreras from the Chicago Cubs rounds out the list as the Gold Glove catcher award will come out of the National League Central Division. For Stallings, winning the award would just be a capper to what was a career-year for the 30-year old backstop. Not saying Stallings isn't he future for the Pirates at catcher, but he has certainly staked his claim to the role for at least the 2021 season. With the off-season just getting started, it will be the start of what looks to be a busy off-season for the Bucs.
Comments
Post a Comment