2018 Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Award winners released
Wilson®, The Official Ball Glove of Major League Baseball®, announced the 2018 Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Awards tonight in a special telecast on MLB Network hosted by Robert Flores and Eric Byrnes. The Oakland Athletics' 25-year-old third baseman Matt Chapman is one of four first-time winners and the overall Wilson Defensive Player of the Year. The Angels' Andrelton Simmons continued his dominance as MLB's leading defender at shortstop, winning a fifth award over the last six seasons. The Rockies' DJ LeMahieu earned honors as baseball's best defender at second base for a third time. Meanwhile, the Arizona Diamondbacks are MLB's Defensive Team of the Year for the second time in four seasons. Here's the complete list of the 2018 Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Award winners:
POSITION | WINNER TEAM | # of WDPOY's Won
Catcher | Mike Zunino Mariners | 1st
1B | Freddie Freeman Braves | 1st
2B | DJ LeMahieu Rockies | 3rd ('13, '17, '18)
3B | Matt Chapman Athletics | 1st
SS | Andrelton Simmons Angels | 5th ('13, '14, '15, '17, '18)
LF | Alex Gordon Royals | 3rd ('14, '17, '18)
CF | Kevin Kiermaier Rays | 2nd ('16, '18)
RF | Mookie Betts Red Sox | 2nd ('16, '18)
P | Zack Greinke Diamondbacks | 2nd ('16, '18)
Player of Year | Matt Chapman Athletics | 1st
Defensive Team of the Year | Arizona Diamondbacks | 2nd ('15, '18)
HOW WILSON DEFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE YEAR ARE DETERMINED
Touted as one of the more prominent and respected Major League Baseball awards, the Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Award is the official MLB defensive achievement award. The award recognizes the top defensive player at each position across Leagues, and since 2014 has recognized the best overall defensive team. One player is also recognized as the top Overall Defensive Player in MLB. Winners, both individual positions and the team award, are determined using a formula that combines traditional defensive stats with advanced metrics, as well as the data logged by the baseball experts working for the scouting service Inside Edge.
MLB NETWORK HAS EXCLUSIVE ANNOUNCEMENT OF WINNERS
For the seventh consecutive year, MLB Network made the exclusive announcement of the Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Awards. The special telecast featured Matt Chapman's Overall Player of the Year Award and the Diamondbacks Team of the Year Award inside MLB Network's studios. Those and all Wilson Defensive award trophies bear the name of the winner, including the team award earned by the Diamondbacks. The specially designed Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Awards will be presented to each winner in on-field ceremonies early in the 2019 MLB season.