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ESPN rates Buster Posey, Brandon Crawford among best defenders in baseball

Is this the year the Giants finally snap their Gold Glove-less streak?

By Grant Brisbee
Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

Omar Vizquel won the last Gold Glove for the Giants. That was in 2006, when phones didn't even show movies on them and you lived like an animal. Vizquel was 38, and he probably didn't deserve to win, considering Adam Everett had one of the greatest defensive seasons of all-time, but we'll take it.

Since then: nothing.

This comes up now because Keith Law of ESPN ranked the best defensive players in baseball (Insider-only), and two Giants show up.

belt gif

And ... wait, no. Brandon Crawford and Buster Posey, silly.

Best catcher glove

  1. Russell Martin
  2. Buster Posey
  3. Yadier Molina

...

The top four players all earn the highest marks from scouts and execs, with (Jonathan) Lucroy and Posey frequently ranking among the top pitch-framers in the game.

Molina isn't hitting as well this year, which opens the door wide for Posey to lock up some of the votes! It's something of a longshot, but it's nice to see Posey's defense and pitch-framing -- which have improved dramatically every year since he's come up -- get recognized. Molina will probably win the manager vote until he's 50, but advanced statistics are a part of the award now. Now that pitch framing is likely to be included ... who knows? Posey's got a shot. I tell you, this kid's gonna be good one day.

Brandon Crawford showed up on one list, but he was left off another.

Best infield glove
  1. Andrelton Simmons
  2. Brandon Crawford
  3. Nolan Arenado
  4. Manny Machado
  5. Jose Iglesias

Ugh, Simmons. He is the Gary's Old Towne Tavern to Crawford's Cheers. Always one ... step ... ahead. When it came to the best arms, though, Crawford was a surprising omission, losing out to Simmons, Manny Machado, Adeiny Hechavarria, Mike Moustakas, and Troy Tulowitzki. Of course, culling a list of players from both leagues, regardless of infield position, is an impossible task, as Law notes:

Gah, there are some seriously ridiculous arms on the left sides of major league infields, and I'm not sure even 10 names would be enough to hold them all.

Fair enough. I still think Crawford has a better arm than Tulo now. There's evidence to support it!

But it's still close enough to be debatable. Crawford is certainly hitting well enough to win a Gold Glove this year, so he has that going for him. It's still going to Simmons, though.

Posey, though? Has a shot. Here's a reminder that people around the league agree.

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