Two finalists, but no Orioles win a Gold Glove this year

With just two Gold Glove winners since the 2015 season, the Orioles will not add to that total this year. The Orioles had two finalists with Ryan Mountcastle at first base and Colton Cowser in left field, but neither won the Rawlings Gold Glove when the winners were announced tonight during a live ESPN broadcast.

Minnesota’s Carlos Santana won at first base and Nathaniel Lowe of Texas was the third finalist at that spot for the American League. Cleveland’s Steven Kwan won in left field for the third year in a row in the AL and the Yankees' Alex Verdugo was the third left field finalist.

The last time the Orioles had more than one Gold Glove winner was in 2014 when J.J. Hardy, Nick Markakis and Adam Jones were winners. Manny Machado was a solo O's winner in 2015 and Ramón Urías won at third base in 2022. Urías was the last Oriole to win the Gold Glove.

Baltimore’s 72 Gold Gloves since the award’s inception in 1957 are second-most all-time behind St. Louis with 98.

Had Cowser won the award and then later this month added the Baseball Writers' Association of America AL Rookie of the Year award, he would have been the first to win both since Ichiro Suzuki in 2001.

Cowser is in rehab mode currently. Dr. Donald Sheridan performed surgery Oct. 15 in Phoenix to repair Cowser's fractured left hand. He is expected to be fully ready for spring training. Cowser, the No. 5 overall MLB Draft pick in 2021, sustained the injury when he was hit by a pitch during Game 2 of the O’s Wild Card playoff series against Kansas City.  

Mountcastle made just three errors in 114 games at first base this season. His eight Defensive Runs Saved tied with Santana for first among AL first baseman and also led all O’s players. Mountcastle has now been a Gold Glove finalist the last two seasons. Not bad for a player who was drafted as a shortstop and was later tried at third base and corner outfield before settling in at first base.

Cowser’s 11 Outs Above Average (OAA) led all Orioles players and he recorded eight OAA in left field, while Kwan had four OAA. Cowser made 91 starts this season in left field, 36 in center and six in right field. Cowser did a very solid job for the O’s in left after they traded Austin Hays, a 2023 Gold Glove finalist, to Philadelphia at the trade deadline.

The O’s last Gold Glove winner at first base was Rafael Palmeiro in 1998. They have never had a winner for left field, but the award did not distinguish different outfield positions until 2011.

Cleveland and Kansas City each had four finalists to lead all AL clubs.

AL Gold Glove winners:

1B: Carlos Santana, Minnesota

2B: Andrés Giménez, Cleveland

SS: Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City

3B: Alex Bregman, Houston

LF: Steven Kwan, Cleveland

CF: Daulton Varsho, Toronto

RF: Wilyer Abreu, Boston

C: Cal Raleigh, Seattle

P: Seth Lugo, Kansas City

Utility: Dylan Moore, Seattle