White Sox: Giolito, Sanchez among Gold Glove finalists
On Thursday, it was announced that Lucas Giolito and Yolmer Sanchez of the Chicago White Sox both were finalists to receive Gold Glove awards at their respective positions, as detailed by MLB.com
Lucas Giolito had a breakout year in 2019 in which he went 14-9 with a 3.41 ERA, 3.43 FIP, and 1.06 WHIP. He also registered 11.6 K/9 as compared to 2.9 BB/9.
His defense went under the radar, though, which was impressive in its own right. He had three defensive runs saved and four pickoffs according to FanGraphs. The second number actually was not even close to his career-high set in 2018 when he picked off 14 baserunners.
While it often goes under-the-radar for pitchers, having someone who can defend their position anywhere is a plus and when the person on the mound doesn’t represent a liability in the field it helps avoid infield hits and baserunners advancing in his case.
Joining Giolito in this three-person competition will be Mike Leake, who spent half the season with the Seattle Mariners before being dealt to the Arizona Diamondbacks on July 31, and Minnesota Twins’ pitcher, Jose Berrios.
Yolmer Sanchez, meanwhile, will be looking to claim the award over DJ LeMahieu and Jose Altuve.
Sanchez has a very strong case to win the award as he registered 11 DRS and 4.9 UZR in 1,256 2/3 innings at the keystone.
LeMahieu has a formidable case as well with 5 DRS and a 4.0 UZR in 579 2/3 innings at second base. The innings he played at the position could be used for or against him by voters.
It can either show just how strong he was defensively as he would have been on pace to register similar numbers to Sanchez if he had played as many innings as him there, or it can be used against him saying that he didn’t even play there enough to warrant getting an award for his play.
Altuve was not particularly great defensively as he had -2 DRS and a -6.4 UZR. A player of his caliber has name recognition, though, which helps sometimes with regards to winning the Gold Glove award.
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Regardless of whether or not Giolito and Sanchez win a Gold Glove award, it is still an honor to have nominations from the Chicago White Sox organization.