Chicago Cubs net three well-deserving Gold Glove Award finalists

Chicago Cubs: NL first base: Anthony Rizzo, Freddy Freeman, Joey Votto

SDI rankings: all three are within two-tenths of each other.  Joey Votto (1 Gold Glove) 5.7,  Freddie Freeman 5.6, Anthony Rizzo (1 Gold Glove) 5.5, so no clear winner here.  Looking at other stats, Rizzo and Freeman posted .995 fielding percentages, Votto was a hair better at .996.  Call this one even as well.

Digging into the numbers a little deeper we find Freeman clearing the field on Revised Zone Rating (.851) versus Votto (.839) and Rizzo (.829), and on UZR-150 8.2 for Freeman versus 5.0 (Votto) and 2.0 (Rizzo).

On stats alone, it looks like Freeman has an advantage but it could come down to intangibles among the managers and coaching staff who vote.  I am particularly curious about how Rizzo’s uber-aggressive plays on bunts will play with the voters.