With the 2024 regular season complete and the postseason almost over, it’s time for awards season. Earlier this week, Major League Baseball announced the Gold Glove finalists for the AL and NL. This award recognizes who the best defensive players were at each position this season. Colton Cowser and Ryan Mountcastle joined a group of great defenders in this year’s ballot.
Colton Cowser did it all in his rookie season for the O’s. Cowser played all three outfield positions in 153 games in 2024. Cowser started this season splitting time with Austin Hays in right field and was thrusted into the starting role after the team traded Hays to Philadelphia. Fans were unsure how Cowser would handle the full-time duties in left. Camden Yards is arguably the most difficult place to play left field, as the wall is 384 feet from home plate. The dimensions were no problem for Cowser, who committed only one error on the season. His fielding percentage was perfect in center and right, and it was .995 in left field. Cowser also had three putouts and over 300 putouts this season. Colton Cowser leads the current AL Rookie of the Year race. With Cowser getting at done at the dish and in the outfield, the O’s have found their answer in the outfield for years to come.
Ryan Mountcastle finds himself as a finalist for the second year in a row. Known as a power hitter coming through the O’s system, Mountcastle has continued to improve his defense. Mountcastle made almost all of his starts this season at first base, and he did not disappoint. Mountcastle had a fielding percentage of .997 and just three errors in close to 1,000 innings at first this season. One of the leaders of the Orioles defense, his production was sorely missed when he went on IL with a wrist injury. The entire O’s defense took a step back when he was gone but went back to making dazzling plays in his return. Many around the league were questioning his defense as a young player, but the 27-year-old has turned it around the last few years.
The Orioles didn’t end the season they wanted to, but it was still a very successful season. Multiple players are up for different awards like All-MLB and the Gold Glove. However, Orioles fans are hoping the individual success will soon translate to the postseason.
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