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As if the Gold Glove he picked up earlier this week weren’t enough, Paul Goldschmidt will have to find some more room on his mantelpiece. For it was announced tonight that he has also won the 2017 Silver Slugger at first base. That’s the award given out by MLB in association with Louisville Slugger® for the top offensive player at each position in each league, as selected in a vote by MLB coaches and managers.
Goldschmidt edged out the other National League candidates at first base. Both Joey Votto of the Reds and the Nationals’ Ryan Zimmerman matched Paul in home-runs, each man hitting 36. But it appears Goldy’s clear lead in RBI, where he drove in 120 runs, more than negated Votto’s better OPS, which was mostly due to his league-leading 134 walks. Cody Bellinger of the Dodgers also hit more home-runs overall (39) than any of the above, and did start most often at 1B, but with 30 HR and 77 RBI at the position, his output there lagged a little.
11 of the 2017 Silver Slugger Award winners are under 30 years old, including four-time winner Altuve, who is 27. Thirteen teams are represented, with the Houston Astros, Cleveland Indians, Miami Marlins, Colorado Rockies and New York Yankees each having multiple winners. Here’s a complete table detailing the winners in each league, first for the AL, then the NL, along with their seasons stats and previous history for the award.
2017 Silver Slugger winners
Pos. | Winner/Age | Team | Stats | # SSAs won |
---|---|---|---|---|
Pos. | Winner/Age | Team | Stats | # SSAs won |
1B | Eric Hosmer – 28 | Kansas City Royals | .318 BA, 25 HR, 94 RBI, .882 OPS | 1st – ’17 |
2B | JoseAltuve – 27 | Houston Astros | .346 BA, 24 HR, 81 RBI, .957 OPS, 32 SB | 4th – ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17 |
SS | Francisco Lindor – 23 | Cleveland Indians | .273 BA, 33 HR, 89 RBI, .842 OPS | 1st – ’17 |
3B | José Ramírez – 25 | Cleveland Indians | .318 BA, 29 HR, 83 RBI, .957 OPS | 1st – ’17 |
C | Gary Sánchez – 24 | New York Yankees | .278 BA, 33 HR, 90 RBI, .876 OPS | 1st – ’17 |
OF | Justin Upton – 30 | Los Angeles Angels | .273 BA, 35 HR, 109 RBI, .901 OPS, 14 SB | 3rd – ’11, ’14, ’17 |
OF | Aaron Judge – 25 | New York Yankees | .284 BA, 52 HR, 114 RBI, 1.049 OPS | 1st – ’17 |
OF | George Springer – 28 | Houston Astros | .283 BA, 34 HR, 85 RBI, .889 OPS | 1st – ’17 |
DH | Nelson Cruz – 37 | Seattle Mariners | .288 BA, 39 HR, 119 RBI, .924 OPS | 2nd – ’15, ’17 |
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Pos. | Winner/Age | Team | Stats | # SSAs won |
1B | Paul Goldschmidt– 30 | Arizona Diamondbacks | .297 BA, 36 HR, 120 RBI, .966 OPS | 3rd – ‘13, ‘15, ‘17 |
2B | Daniel Murphy– 32 | Washington Nationals | .322 BA, 23 HR, 93 RBI, .928 OPS | 2nd – ‘16, ‘17 |
SS | Corey Seager – 23 | Los Angeles Dodgers | .295 BA, 22 HR, 77 RBI, .854 OPS | 2nd – ’16, ‘17 |
3B | Nolan Arenado– 26 | Colorado Rockies | .309 BA, 37 HR, 130 RBI, .959 OPS | 3rd – ‘15, ‘16, ‘17 |
C | Buster Posey – 30 | San Francisco Giants | .320 BA, 12 HR, 67 RBI, .861 OPS | 4th – ‘12, ’14, ’15, ‘17 |
OF | Charlie Blackmon– 31 | Colorado Rockies | .331 BA, 37 HR, 104 RBI, 1.000 OPS, 14 SB | 2nd – ‘16, ‘17 |
OF | Giancarlo Stanton – 28 | Miami Marlins | .281 BA, 59 HR, 132 RBI, 1.007 OPS | 2nd – ‘14, ‘17 |
OF | Marcell Ozuna – 26 | Miami Marlins | .312 BA, 37 HR, 124 RBI, .924 OPS | 1st – ‘17 |
P | Adam Wainwright – 36 | St. Louis Cardinals | .262 BA, 2 HR, 11 RBI, .731 OPS | 1st – ‘17 |
So, Goldschmidt was the best offensive player at 1B in the league, and his Gold Glove shows he was the best defensive player there too. Will that translate into MVP success? We’ll have to wait until next week to find that out...