The Toronto Blue Jays maintained their sterling reputation as one of the best defensive teams in baseball this season.
Now, their individual contributors are being recognized, as five Blue Jays were named Gold Glove finalists on Wednesday.
Alejandro Kirk (catcher), Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (first base), Ty France (first base) Andrés Giménez (second base) and Ernie Clement (third base and utility) were all named amongst the final three in consideration at their respective positions.
Clement is considered a favourite for the utility Gold Glove award — first introduced in 2022 — after logging 1,265.1 innings across four infield positions and tying for the MLB lead in defensive runs saved with 22.
However he was also nominated at third base where he played nearly half his innings (603) and accumulated half his DRS (11). Clement was a finalist at the position last season, losing out to current Boston Red Sox third baseman Alex Bregman.
Kirk tied for eighth amongst catchers with nine DRS and ranked third in MLB with a plus-22 fielding run value according to Statcast — San Francisco Giants catcher Patrick Bailey ranked first at plus-31. The Blue Jays' 26-year-old backstop has often graded out as one of baseball's premier blocking and framing catchers, ranking in the 98th and 100th percentile in the categories, respectively, this season.
Guerrero Jr. tied for sixth with 10 DRS at first base, yet graded out below average by Statcast's measures. The all-star slugger has garnered attention for his ability to cut down runners on the bases with his above-average arm at the position.
Giménez, a three-time Gold Glove winner and winner of the 2023 Platinum Glove award for best overall fielder, was included despite missing 61 games. He still managed to tie for fifth in DRS at second base with nine, despite playing only 719.2 innings at the position due to both injury and filling in for an injured Bo Bichette down the stretch at shortstop.
Ty France was named as a first-base finalist alongside Guerrero for his work with both the Blue Jays and Minnesota Twins, playing 812.1 innings with the Twins compared to 164.1 in Toronto.
The Blue Jays have won consecutive team Gold Glove awards and ranked fourth in MLB with 51 DRS this season.
Below is the complete list of finalists from both leagues.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Pitcher
Luis Serverino (Athletics)
Jacob deGrom (Texas Rangers)
Max Fried (New York Yankees)
Catcher
Alejandro Kirk (Toronto Blue Jays)
Carlos Narváez (Boston Red Sox)
Dillon Dingler (Detroit Tigers)
First Base
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Toronto Blue Jays)
Ty France (Minnesota Twins/Toronto Blue Jays)
Carlos Santana (Cleveland Guardians)
Second Base
Luis Rengifo (Los Angeles Angels)
Marcus Semien (Texas Rangers)
Andrés Giménez (Toronto Blue Jays)
Third Base
Ernie Clement (Toronto Blue Jays)
José Ramírez (Texas Rangers)
Maikel Garcia (Kansas City Royals)
Shortstop
Bobby Witt Jr. (Kansas City Royals)
Corey Seager (Texas Rangers)
Taylor Walls (Tampa Bay Rays)
Left Field
Steven Kwan (Cleveland Guardians)
Wyatt Langford (Texas Rangers)
Tyler Soderstrom (Athletics)
Centre Field
Kyle Isbel (Kansas City Royals)
Ceddanne Rafaela (Boston Red Sox)
Julio Rodríguez (Seattle Mariners)
Right Field
Adolis García (Texas Rangers)
Cam Smith (Houston Astros)
Wilyer Abreu (Boston Red Sox)
Utility
Ernie Clement (Toronto Blue Jays)
Mauricio Dubón (Houston Astros)
Daniel Schneemann (Cleveland Guardians)
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Pitcher
David Peterson (New York Mets)
Matthew Boyd (Chicago Cubs)
Logan Webb (San Francisco Giants)
Catcher
Patrick Bailey (San Francisco Giants)
Luis Torrens (New York Mets)
Carson Kelly (Chicago Cubs)
First Base
Bryce Harper (Philadelphia Phillies)
Matt Olson (Atlanta Braves)
Spencer Steer (Cincinnati Reds)
Second Base
Xavier Edwards (Miami Marlins)
Brice Turang (Milwaukee Brewers)
Nico Hoerner(Chicago Cubs)
Third Base
Matt Shaw (Chicago Cubs)
Ryan McMahon (Colorado Rockies/New York Yankees)
Ke'Bryan Hayes (Pittsburgh Pirates/Cincinnati Reds)
Shortstop
Masyn Winn (St. Louis Cardinals)
Nick Allen (Atlanta Braves)
Mookie Betts (Los Angeles Dodgers)
Left Field
Ian Happ (Chicago Cubs)
Tommy Pham (Pittsburgh Pirates)
Kyle Stowers (Miami Marlins)
Centre Field
Jacob Young (Washington Nationals)
Pete Crow-Armstrong (Chicago Cubs)
Victor Scott II (St. Louis Cardinals)
Right Field
Corbin Carroll (Arizona Diamondbacks)
Sal Frelick (Milwaukee Brewers)
Fernando Tatis Jr. (San Diego Padres)
Utility
Javier Sanoja (Miami Marlins)
Miguel Rojas (Los Angeles Dodgers)
Jared Triolo (Pittsburgh Pirates)
