A’s have another Gold Glove pair
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OAKLAND -- Gold Glove Award winners have tended to come in pairs for the A's in recent seasons. This year is no different.
For the third time in four years, the A’s have two Gold Glove winners in the same season. Third baseman Matt Chapman and catcher Sean Murphy captured the award at their respective positions in the American League on Sunday night.
A combination of votes submitted by managers and coaches and a sabermetric index provided by the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) goes into determining Gold Glove winners. First baseman Matt Olson, who was in contention for the third Gold Glove Award of his career, lost out to Houston's Yuli Gurriel.
For Chapman, earning his third career Gold Glove fulfills the redemption he was seeking after missing out on winning a third consecutive award in 2020 due to an injury-shortened campaign.
Like he did in 2018 and '19, Chapman blew the competition out of the water in a number of notable defensive metrics. His 17 outs above average led all Major League third basemen and was 10 more OAA than José Ramírez, whose seven OAA ranked second in the AL. Chapman also led AL third basemen in assists (274), double plays (39), fielding percentage (.987) and putouts (166).
Chapman’s three Gold Gloves in his first five big league seasons put him halfway toward reaching the A’s record for most in a career. Former third baseman Eric Chavez and center fielder Dwayne Murphy share the record with six each.
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Sean Murphy, who won his first award in what was his first season as a finalist, showcased the outstanding defense the A’s were excited about since his days as a top prospect in their Minor League system. According to Statcast, Murphy had eight runs saved from pitch framing, which led all AL catchers. His 10 defensive runs saved ranked second among AL backstops.
In addition to being one of 10 first-time winners for the award this year, Murphy also made team history. In an organization filled with Hall of Famers, Murphy now stands alone as the first A’s catcher to win a Gold Glove.