St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Kolten Wong is a good defender. No question here. His adjustment to the outfield didn’t go well, yielding one of our favorite pictures, but the guy can play quality second base.
That’s not just my eyes telling the story – the advanced defensive metrics all agree. His DRS is a whopping 18, and his UZR/150 is a similarly whopping 20.5. Given what we know about less-than-full-season defensive metrics, those are probably on the high side for true talent level, but he’s pretty much always rated as solidly above average at second base.
And he wants a dang Gold Glove for it already.
“I think MLB should realize if I don’t win the Gold Glove there is something wrong with it,” Wong told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “It needs to be somebody who deserves it instead of a publicity contest. And sometimes you know that’s how it goes. I was disappointed last year. We’ll see. I’m not holding my breath if I’m a Gold Glove-winner or not. In my heart, I know I am.”
Wong wasn’t done, asking “Who do you know that can make that play?” about a recent solid effort:
GIVE @KOLTENWONG THE GOLD GLOVE NOW! pic.twitter.com/i2QJFUYv3r
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) August 22, 2018
I mean, I know a guy who could make that play, Kolten …
For the third straight season, Javy Baez is going to be dinged in Gold Glove consideration by the fact that he moves around the infield – flashing ridiculous plays all over, like he did last night at shortstop. His advanced defensive metrics are good – generally above average around the horn – but they aren’t eye-popping like Wong’s.
But I have a hard time believing, when you consider his arm, his instincts, and his tagging ability, that he’s not the best defensive second baseman in the league. I’m hopelessly biased, and I see him WAY more than Wong, so I could be wrong. But Javy is special beyond proper description.
I’m not going to argue at this moment that Wong should not win the award or that Baez definitely should. I just think there’s still a conversation there to be had. Also, yes, Javy could totally make that play. And he wouldn’t have bobbled the ball, either.