The winners of the 2026 Rawlings Gold Glove were announced Sunday night by Major League Baseball and, as expected, Cubs wunderkind Pete Crow-Armstrong took home his second straight National League Gold Glove in center field. PCA, who also won a Gold Glove in 2025 and is expected to be named the NL MVP in 2026, was the best defender in baseball this past season based on both the numbers and the eye test. Here are the game's best defenders in 2026 according to Statcast's Fielding Runs Value, an all-encompassing metric that factors in range and arm, as well as blocking and framing for catchers: Crow-Armstrong's +26 FRV is the fifth best in a single season since FRV launched in 2016 and the second best by a non-catcher, trailing only Nick Ahmed's +28 FRV season at shortstop in 2018.
Gold Gloves have be awarded since 1957 and are given to the best defensive player at each position in each league. That first year was one MLB-wide honor at each position. In 1958, Gold Gloves were split into AL and NL.
Also, it used to be three outfielders per league regardless of exact position. Now the outfield spots are broken down into left field, center field, and right field. Winners are determined through manager/coach voting (75%) and a statistical component (25%).
Team employees can not vote for their own players. While MLB announced "finalists" for each Gold Glove a few weeks back, remember that the voting was already complete and those finalists were simply the top three vote-getters at each position. This means, obviously, that postseason performance had no impact.
Here now are the 2026 Gold Glove winners. Brandon Valenzuela (Blue Jays) and Austin Wells (Yankees) Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Blue Jays) and Vinnie Pasquantino (Royals) Michael Massey (Royals) and Chase Meidroth (White Sox) Andrés Giménez (Blue Jays) and Bobby Witt Jr. (Royals) Brooks Lee (Twins) and Nick Loftin (Royals) Wyatt Langford (Rangers) and Chandler Simpson (Rays) Evan Carter (Rangers) and Steven Kwan (Guardians) Nathan Lukes (Blue Jays) and Cam Smith (Astros) Jacob deGrom (Rangers) and José Soriano (Angels/Blue Jays) José Caballero (Yankees) and Zach McKinstry (Tigers) Freddy Fermin (Padres) and Luis Torrens (Mets) Ty France (Padres) and TJ Rumfield (Rockies) Brandon Lowe (Pirates) and JJ Wetherholt (Cardinals) Dansby Swanson (Cubs) and Masyn Winn (Cardinals) Max Muncy (Dodgers) and Javier Sanoja (Marlins) Ian Happ (Cubs) and Daylen Lile (Nationals) Michael Harris II (Braves) and Andy Pages (Dodgers) Carson Benge (Mets) and Seiya Suzuki (Cubs) Michael McGreevy (Cardinals) and Chris Sale (Braves) Jared Triolo (Pirates) and Ildemaro Vargas (Diamondbacks)
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