The Braves have two Gold Glove Award finalists.
Matt Olson is a finalist among National League first basemen, and Chris Sale is a finalist among pitchers, as announced by Rawlings, which presents the award.
Olson’s competition: The Phillies’ Bryce Harper and the Diamondbacks’ Christian Walker.
Sale’s competition: The Phillies’ Zack Wheeler and the Mets’ Luis Severino.
Michael Harris II is one of baseball’s best center fielders, but was not a finalist for the award at his position. He missed about two months with a hamstring strain.
Austin Riley has shown terrific defensive improvement, but also did not make the cut. He missed almost two months with two separate ailments – the second one a season-ending hand fracture.
Both Harris and Riley still met the eligibility requirements to be on the ballot. But Milwaukee’s Blake Perkins, Colorado’s Brenton Doyle and Washington’s Jacob Young were the NL center field finalists, while San Francisco’s Matt Chapman, St. Louis’ Nolan Arenado and Colorado’s Ryan McMahon were the NL third base finalists.
The Gold Glove Award is for overall fielding excellence. Each club casts seven votes – one for the manager and six for coaches. Those managers and coaches cannot vote for players on their own teams.
Winners will be announced Nov. 3.
