Trout, Calhoun named Gold Glove Award finalists

NEW YORK -- Angels center fielder Mike Trout and right fielder Kole Calhoun were named Rawlings Gold Glove Award finalists on Thursday. Winners will be unveiled Nov. 10 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN, and both will be hoping to capture their first Gold Gloves.

Trout, a finalist for the first time since his rookie season in 2012, will have to beat out Kevin Kiermaier of the Rays and Kevin Pillar of the Blue Jays in what is perhaps the deepest position of all. Calhoun, who lost out to then-Orioles outfielder Nick Markakis last year, is competing against Josh Reddick of the A's and J.D. Martinez of the Tigers.

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Two-time Gold Glove winner Albert Pujols wasn't a finalist at first base, largely because pain in his right foot forced him to start his last 28 games at designated hitter.

Calhoun looks like a favorite to win it for American League right fielders. The 28-year-old recorded 11 assists, tied for fourth at his position. Through Sept. 13, his Defensive Index rating -- an all-encompassing stat compiled by the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR), which accounts for about 25 percent of the vote -- was 7.2, far better than any other AL right fielder.

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Calhoun's Ultimate Zone rating (13.8) ranked first among AL right fielders, with Martinez second (7.7) and Reddick fifth (minus-1.7).

Trout has significantly improved the strength of his throwing arm over the years, with help from a long-toss program he and Calhoun began this season. The 24-year-old recorded seven outfield assists in 2015 -- three more than his previous career high, set last year -- and finished with a UZR of 0.2.

But Kiermaier's UZR was a whopping 30.0 - more than double that of Lorenzo Cain, the second-place finisher at center field -- and he looks like a favorite to run away with the Gold Glove for AL center fielders this year.

The finalist list can be found here.