Yankees’ pair of Gold Glove finalists will definitely surprise you

Yankees third base wizard Gio Urshela deserves the Gold Glove at third base, especially after these other jokers were revealed as finalists.

Anyone who’s seen Yankees third baseman Gio Urshela knows that he’s quite possibly the best defensive third baseman in the American League, bizarre metrics be damned.

Every season, unfortunately, he’ll have to contend with Oakland A’s legend Matt Chapman who, in the eyes of many, leaves Urshela in the dust. Subjective, sure, but we do have to understand that there’s a community that believes primarily in Chapman.

Except for in 2020! Chapman doesn’t appear to have met the threshold for minimum games played at the position due to the mid-season injury he suffered. And so, for one year only, the sweet swingin’ A will have to sit on the sidelines while Urshela faces off against a relative unknown and a second baseman for the honors!

We…we simply have to win this one.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa was, we must say, the American League leader in 2020 with eight defensive runs saved.

We also must say that, time and again, “defensive runs saved” makes zero sense to us, and Kiner-Falefa taking a Gold Glove to Arlington on the strength of the metrics that continually underrate Urshela would be infuriating.

So, here we’ve got a converted catcher who’s a bit player on a middling AL West team and an infielder who’s played a lot of clunky second base over the past few years in Yoan Moncada, and you expect me not to get cocky? Urshela has to be the favorite here, and he has to be the winner, too.

Look, have my sights been lowered over the past decade of my Yankee fandom? Of course! Did I care about individual accolades over the dynasty years? No, I did not!

But this is 2020, dammit. I’ve watched Aaron Judge lose the MVP to a small man with a trash can aid. I’ve watched people tell me Andrew Benintendi was the real Rookie of the Year when Judge was out here hitting 52 home runs. I’m done with slights, perceived or otherwise.

Give my man the hardware.

But he’s not the only Yankee to get invited to the party. Nope, not DJ LeMahieu. Certainly not Gleyber Torres! It’s…2019 defensive liability Clint Frazier!

What a glow-up for the kid, who should be playing every damned day in 2021. The hardest-working man in right field not only turned himself into a viable defender, but into one of the top three at a position he didn’t even play full-time.

Whether he wins or not, we’re extremely proud of him — frankly, this also presents a pretty great argument for giving Gleyber Torres another year to figure out shortstop. How many of you would’ve said the exact same thing about Frazier’s instincts and natural ability last winter?

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