Reid Compton-USA TODAY Sports
Despite their dismal season on the field, the Chicago Cubs will have the chance to have two award winners at the end of the season.
Second basemen Darwin Barney and first basemen Anthony Rizzo are among the finalists in their respective positions to win the Gold Glove Award, but it doesn’t seem likely that they will end up getting the trophy home once the winners are announced.
Despite the fact that the award should consider only the fielding statistics, it’s known that the players that have good offensive seasons are the ones with the most chances to get the trophy. There are some exceptions, however, like what happened with Barney last year where he won the award after posting one of the best defensive seasons in recent years.
This time it won’t be the same thing, as both players struggled mightily at the plate, and that will hurt their chances.
Barney had a very poor year offensively, in which he only hit .208, and even when he had a great season on the field, he was worse than last year so he regressed in both aspects. Considering he will go up against Mark Ellis and Brandon Phillips, it doesn’t seem likely that he’ll be able to come away with a second straight award.
Rizzo, on the other hand, had good numbers, but there’s a lot behind the stats. The former San Diego Padres player hit 23 HR with 80 BRI, but his average was only .233 after he surprised in his rookie year where his average hovered around the .280 mark. Rizzo will go against Paul Goldschmidt and Adrian Gonzalez, so he also has tough competition to win the award.
Despite their solid defensive performances, it doesn’t seem likely that they will get any award this season. But if they can continue with this level of performance, they should be able to contend for fielding titles year in and year out.
Juan Pablo Aravena is a sports writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @jparavenarant or add him to your network on Google
