Seattle Mariners' OF Looking to Win First Gold Glove Award After Being Named Finalist

Seattle Mariners outfielder Julio Rodriguez was named a finalist for the Gold Glove Award in center field on Wednesday afternoon.

He's matched up against Luis Robert Jr. (CWS) and Kevin Keirmaier (TOR).

You can see the full list of finalists here. The awards will be handed out on November 5.

Per an MLB release, here's how the winners are determined:

To determine the winners at the nine standard positions, the 30 MLB managers and up to six coaches from each team vote from a pool of players in their league, excluding players from their own team. These votes comprise 75% of the selection total, with the SABR Defensive Index counting for the other 25%.

For the utility position, Rawlings collaborated with SABR to create a specialized defensive formula separate from the traditional selection process.

Rodriguez is one of the best young players in baseball across the board. Defensively, he moves like a gazelle in centerfield and is a major reason why the Mariners' pitching staff was among the best in baseball. He had a .994 fielding percentage and made just two errors.

At the plate, he also took another stride this year, hitting .275 with 32 homers and 103 RBI. He stole 37 bases and posted an OPS of .818.

He's the centerpiece of a Mariners franchise that missed the playoffs by 1.0 game this season. They finished just behind the Texas Rangers for the third and final wild card spot.

With Ken Griffey Jr. and Ichiro Suzuki, the Mariners have a long history of dynamic outfield defenders. Each of them won multiple Gold Gloves. We'll see if Rodriguez can join that lineage now.

The last Mariners to win a Gold Glove were J.P. Crawford and Evan White, who both won in the 2020 season.

Follow Fastball on FanNation on social media

Continue to follow our Fastball on FanNation coverage on social media by LIKING us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.

You can also subscribe to "The Payoff Pitch" podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.