I’ve had some time to think about Jeter winning the gold glove. Plus I talked to Mike Adams who was very pissed off and got a note from my friend Rich, a guy whose opinion I respect very much and is as level headed with everything in his life as anyone I know.
Now that time has passed and I looked into things a little more, a couple of comments.
First, I have to admit I was surprised when I read that Jeter won another Gold Glove. I think of him as the leader of the Yankees and the key to their success (but not failure, hmm, for some reason), but not as a superb and BEST fielding shortstop in the American League. Not that he might NOT be that good, I just don’t think of him as one.
Then I saw that 7 guys returned from last year and only one was a first time Gold Glove and the 9th guy was Pudge Rodriquez. This elite club is very typical of awards (pro bowl in NFL, all star game in NBA) in that once you are in, its not uncommon to repeat even if you are not the most deserving.
Second, for those, like Mike Adams and a lot of Red Sox fans who look at just stats, Jeter’s numbers are not great. He’s basically 6th in fielding percentage, 9th in double plays, had more errors than all but 6 or 7 other short stops in the AL, was 6th in assists, and 7th in put outs.
BUT…
He played in the 4th most games and 5th most innings. He drops back well, gets to balls and is able to be in position to take cut-off throws. Yes, I know, all things Alex Gonzalez does well too.
While I admit Alex Gonzalez is a better pure fielding short stop, and trust me, I saw him play, I don’t think the gap is as big as people think.
Couple of things that hurt Alex Gonzalez.
1) He only played in 111 games. It’s a lot, but Jeter played in 40 more.
2) The Sox had a huge drop off at the end. HUGE. The Yankees surged at the end. That shouldn’t count in gold gloves, but it does.
3) The rest of the Red Sox infield was great. Really great. Lowell at third, Youkilis at first and Loretta at second. It was one of the best fielding infields of all time. Gonzalez looked good but Jeter looked like a freakin magician compared to ARod, Cano and Giambi/Sheffield.
4) It might not be right but it’s the truth, Jeter has name recognition. He’s a great hitter, runs well, leader of the club, etc. Gonzalez is not a good hitter and was rented for the year. It shouldn’t factor in to it, but it did.
So anyway, I had to lighten up on my diatribe from before. If I wanted a shortstop in the last 2 innings of game 7 of the World Series to preserve a one run lead, I’d want Gonzalez. If I want a shortstop for 162 games, I want Jeter. Does that make him a Gold Glove? Probably not, but a group of baseball experts thought so.
I would be curious as to who came in second and third, and how big the gap in votes were.
I can’t wait for the AL MVP award to come out. It’s not going to be pretty on the Planet Mikey show.