Braves standout Ender Inciarte takes home 2nd straight NL Gold Glove
The foundation for a National League dynasty is setting in the Atlanta Braves' outfield.
Standout center fielder Ender Inciarte won his second straight Rawlings National League Gold Glove Award on Tuesday night, beating out Cincinnati's Billy Hamilton and Washington's Michael Taylor. The 27-year-old Venezuelan product joins Andrelton Simmons, Andruw Jones and Greg Maddux as the only Braves players to win consecutive Gold Gloves this century.
Inciarte has established himself as one of the premier defensive playmakers at any position since breaking into the majors with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2014. Over that span, his 69 defensive runs saved rank fourth-best among all outfielders behind only Kevin Kiermaier (Rays), Jason Hayward (Cubs) and Mookie Betts (Red Sox). That trend held up in 2017.
Per Statcast, only Twins standout — and fellow Gold Glove winner — Byron Buxton logged more outs above average among MLB outfielders last season and Inciarte led all players with seven five-star catches. And though his five defensive runs saved stands as a career low, his 129 out-of-zone plays trailed only Royals veteran Lorenzo Cain.
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Gold Glove awards are decided by a combination of managers and coaches (75 percent) and advanced defensive metrics (25 percent).
Inciarte's teammate, veteran starter R.A. Dickey, was also named a National League finalist, though Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke took home his fourth career trophy.
