6 St. Louis Cardinals finalists for Rawlings Gold Glove

There are six players from the St. Louis Cardinals who are finalists for a 2021 Rawlings Gold Glove Award.

Winners of the 2021 Rawlings Gold Glove Awards will be announced Sunday at 7:30 p.m. CT on ESPN. The St. Louis Cardinals have six players who are finalists for the award at their position. This is amazing news and harkens up memories of some of the great defensive plays this team had over the summer.

Remember this play:

The play showed a tremendous amount of skill and teamwork. It was a true testament to how much effort had been placed throughout the season on defense, glove work, and getting the small things right. Throughout the season, it was amazing to see the tremendous improvement the team has had. The team has six finalists alone is outstanding considering the team had really trailed off in the defense department in recent years.

The Cardinals who are finalists include Yadier Molina, Paul Goldschmidt, Tommy Edman, Nolan Arenado, Tyler O’Neill, and Harrison Bader.  Let’s discuss how these players did in 2021 and their chances of coming up golden.

Yadier Molina

Yadier Molina will be seeking his tenth Gold Glove and his first since 2018. This seems like an injustice. He is Yadi. He should have all the Gold Gloves.

But I digress.

Molina had a .997 fielding percentage in 2021. He had six defensive runs saved this season and notably has 175 defensive runs saved for his career. Molina caught 18 runners stealing and allowed 26 stolen bases, six pass balls, and 44 wild pitches. He had three errors and one throwing error.

Molina is up against Jacob Stallings of the Pittsburgh Pirates and J.T. Realmuto of the Philadelphia Phillies. Realmuto won his Gold Glove in 2019, his first with the Phillies. Stallings is up for his first award with an impressive 21 defensive runs saved.

Tommy Edman

Tommy Edman was a pleasant surprise name to see pop up as a finalist for the Gold Glove at second base.

Fans were disappointed when the Cardinals released Gold Glove-winning second baseman, Kolten Wong. Little did we all know, Edman would far exceed expectations when he took over the position. It was as if we didn’t miss a beat with Edman stepping up to play second.

Edman even had some time in right field. No matter what was asked of Edman, he stepped up and performed above expectations.

Edman had six defensive runs saved, 13 outs above average and 10 runs prevented. Edman was involved in 56 double plays, he started 24, turned 33, and finished eight.

Edman is competing for the honor against Ozzie Albies of the Atlanta Braves and Wong, who is now with the Milwaukee Brewers.

Nolan Arenado

It seemed like every day we saw a play from Nolan Arenado that would make you so thankful that he is a member of the Cardinals. While you wanted Arenado for the offense, he is an elite defender who pulls off magnificent plays with the greatest of ease.

Arenado will look to get his ninth Gold Glove, and first with the Cardinals.

Arenado had six defensive runs saved, 10 outs above average, and eight runs prevented. He had a fielding percentage of .974.

He is up against Manny Machado of the San Diego Padres and Ryan McMahon of the Colorado Rockies.

Tyler O’Neill

With another season in the books that included some nifty plays in the outfield, Tyler O’Neill looks to earn his second consecutive Rawlings Gold Glove as a left fielder.

O’Neill had 12 defensive runs saved, three runs prevented as well as three outs above average. He had a fielding percentage of .962.

While his win in 2020 seemed a surprise, it is no surprise at all in 2021. O’Neill seems a shoo-in for the honor as he’s up against A.J. Pollock and David Peralta.

Harrison Bader

It appears Harrison Bader may finally get that long-coveted Rawlings Gold Glove for his play in center field. Whether it was a jaw-dropping dive or a painful-looking bounce off the wall, Bader had a season filled with tremendous defense in center field.

Bader had 15 defensive runs saved, 14 outs above average and 13 runs prevented. He has a fielding percentage of .990.

Bader is deserving and looks to finally have a great shot at finally getting a Gold Glove. He’s competing for the honor against Bryan Reynolds of the Pittsburgh Pirates and Jackie Bradley Jr., of the Milwaukee Brewers.