Gold Glove Award
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In American baseball, the Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to simply as the Gold Glove, is the award annually given to the Major League player judged to be the most "superior individual fielding performance" at each position (in each league), as voted by the managers and coaches in each league. Eighteen Gold Gloves are awarded each year, one at each of nine positions to a player in both the National League and American League.
- Note: The term "at each of nine positions" is not strictly accurate. Three outfielders are selected, but the award does not distinguish between left, center, and right fielders. Some critics have long called for awarding a single Gold Glove for each individual outfield position, arguing that the three outfield positions are not readily interchangeable defensively.
In 1957, the baseball glove manufacturer Rawlings invented the idea of the Gold Glove to commemorate the best fielding performance at each position in baseball. At the time, there was an award called the "Silver Slugger," which was awarded by Hillerich & Bradsby, the Major League Baseball bat provider of the time, to the league's leading hitters, but there was no award for fielding. A glove made from gold lame-tanned leather was affixed to a walnut base and the Gold Glove was born.
The most Gold Gloves ever won by a player is 16, a feat achieved by both third baseman Brooks Robinson and pitcher Jim Kaat.
Gold Glove awards also exist in other baseball leagues, such as in Japan.
The award should not be confused with the Golden Gloves amateur boxing competition.