NEW YORK -- ‘Tis the season to roll out the gold carpet.
On Thursday, Rawlings held a Gold Glove-themed meet-and-greet at the MLB flagship store in New York City, with three touted award winners on the bill: newly minted World Series champ and two-time Gold Glove winner Brice Turang, Phillies manager and nine-time Gold Glover Don Mattingly and Hall of Famer and seven-time Gold Glove winner Dave Winfield.
Fans who patiently lined up around the block were also treated to a surprise guest: longtime Dodgers first baseman and four-time Gold Glover Steve Garvey, who arrived wearing his own jersey.
If you’re keeping track, that’s 22 total Gold Gloves represented at the meet and greet.
For Turang, Thursday was just the latest stop in a whirlwind victory tour for his World Champion Brewers. Just a few days prior, he was across the street from the MLB store at the “Saturday Night Live” studios appearing on the show’s Halloween episode with manager Pat Murphy and teammate Christian Yelich. Turang spoke highly of the opportunity, saying that everyone on set treated them well even as they were, admittedly, fish out of water.
“Obviously, it's something we don't do, is act,” Turang said. “So, for them to be as nice as they were, it helped you go on stage and calm you down a little bit.”
The Crew contingent also got to meet SNL head honcho Lorne Michaels, as well as director JJ Abrams and actor Tom Hanks, a noted baseball fan himself. Turang said talking with Hollywood celebrities about playing in the World Series was one of the coolest parts of the experience for him.
“I think sometimes you forget that those people watch baseball,” he said. “So when they're talking about baseball and they're talking about the game, you kind of are like, 'Whoa, you watch the game?'”
Sitting next to Turang during Thursday’s meet-and-greet was Mattingly, who had a very different perspective on this year’s World Series. His Phillies lost two out of three to the Brewers down the stretch before securing the third NL Wild Card spot on the season’s final day. They then fell to the Braves in three games in the Wild Card Series.
While watching as much of the Fall Classic from home as he possibly could, Mattingly came away thoroughly impressed with both Tampa Bay and Milwaukee, praising their ability to manufacture runs in multiple ways, bunt effectively and use speed to their advantage, while acknowledging that the 2027 Phillies could seek some inspiration from this year’s champs.
“It really felt like it was the two best teams playing,” he said. “Everybody says old school, but I just thought it was good baseball when you look at the fact that it's hard to score.”
Turang has a long way to go to catch up to Mattingly in Gold Gloves, but both made their mark as infielders, and they seem to have similar philosophies about playing quality defense. When asked about underappreciated aspects of being a good defender, both mentioned mental focus and anticipation. Preparing to defend a screaming liner for nine innings straight requires the ability to get a good jump on the ball, which in turn requires intense concentration.
These skills, as Turang and Mattingly pointed out, don't always neatly show up in the box score.
“If you're going to be a good defender and a consistent defender, you're trying to get off the ball over 100 times a day, and I don't think people realize the focus it takes,” Mattingly said.
The gilded presence at Thursday’s event didn’t stop at the players. Mini Gold Gloves were available for purchase, along with a new book titled “The Finest in the Field” by Ed Wheatley about the history of baseball gloves. The quartet of MLB luminaries spent about 90 minutes signing autographs, taking pictures and shaking hands with the long line of fans that, yes, walked along a gold-colored carpet. Many of the fans were decked out in Brewers championship gear hot off the presses, ready to meet Turang as he sat with his jersey hanging on a rack behind him.
The Mattingly representation was strong as well, with many fans wearing Mattingly jerseys, one young fan in a head-to-toe Yankees uniform (baseball pants included) and another attendee taking it a step further with “Donnie Baseball Belongs In The Hall of Fame” emblazoned on his T-shirt.
Thursday’s festivities were just the start of a gold-themed weekend. Up next were a Rawlings Gold Glove banquet and ceremony at NYC’s famed Plaza Hotel on Friday to celebrate this year’s winners and past honorees. In addition to winning a Gold Glove, Turang is also a finalist for the NL MVP Award, which will be announced next Thursday, Nov. 12.
After an action-packed post-World Series tour, a busy MLB awards season and perhaps hundreds of hands shaken, Turang is looking forward to spending much-needed time with his family, though he’s open should more fun opportunities for the 2026 champs come his way.
“It was a fun week,” he said, “and I'm excited to see what comes after."