Matt Chapman named Wilson Defensive 3B of the Year

The Wilson Defensive Players of the Year were announced on Wednesday, and unfortunately Matt Chapman did not repeat as the top overall defender in MLB. However, he did at least get the nod as the top third baseman.

The overall winner this year is catcher Roberto Perez of the Cleveland Indians. Chapman was the 2018 winner. You can click here to see the full list overall winners, which dates back to 2012.

In addition to the overall winner, Wilson announces a full lineup with one player from each position. It is not split between leagues, but rather just one player per position in the majors, just like the Fielding Bible. Here’s the 2019 lineup:

• P: Zack Greinke, ARZ/HOU
• C: Roberto Perez, CLE
• 1B: Freddie Freeman, ATL
• 2B: Kolten Wong, STL
• SS: Andrelton Simmons, LAA
• 3B: Matt Chapman, OAK
• LF: David Peralta, ARZ
• CF: Lorenzo Cain, MIL
• RF: Aaron Judge, NYY
• Overall: Perez
• Team: Houston Astros

Greinke, Perez, Wong, Chapman, Peralta, and Cain also won the Fielding Bible awards. The other Bible winners who missed out on this one were 1B Matt Olson, SS Nick Ahmed, and RF Cody Bellinger. None of Freeman, Simmons, nor Judge won Gold Gloves this year either (Anthony Rizzo, Francisco Lindor, and Mookie Betts got those respective spots), so this is the first 2019 defensive award for each of them.

Quick hot take: The Fielding Bible did a better job this year. Among the three different results, I preferred the Bible winner for each. I don’t mind Perez as the overall winner, but of course would have preferred Chapman and (off the top of my head without thinking too hard) would also have considered Ahmed and Bellinger. Also off the top of my head, I’m surprised the Cardinals didn’t get the team nod, but I haven’t researched it enough to say whether that’s a snub or not.

Glove manufacturer Wilson began their defensive awards in 2012, but they took their current form in 2014, recognizing the top fielder in the majors at each position plus the single best overall. The thing that sets them apart from other awards is that they are based entirely on statistics rather than a vote by humans, with a combination of traditional and advanced metrics going into account.

Congrats to Chapman on another bit of hardware! This will go nicely with his newest Gold Glove and Fielding Bible award. Now go vote for him for Platinum Glove (voting ends Thursday!).