The 2026 Fielding Bible Awards mark the 21st annual honoring of the best defensive players in baseball. The awards are voted on by a panel of former players, media members, and statistical analysts, who rank the top players at each position, as well as a multi-position award. They also vote on a Player of the Year and Team of the Year winner.
In selecting a roster of voters we compiled a diverse group of former players, media members, and statistical analysts from across the country.
Below is a list of those who voted for The Fielding Bible Awards in 2026. More detailed bios on our voters are below the results.
Daniel Álvarez-Montes (El Extra Base)
Ben Clemens (FanGraphs)
John Dewan (co-founder, SIS)
Chris Dial (Inventor, Runs Effectively Defended)
Patrick Dubuque (Baseball Prospectus)
Alyson Footer (MLB.com)
Chelsea Janes (SNY)
Tyler Kepner (The Athletic)
Bill Ladson (MLB.com)
Do-Hyun Park (Statcast)
Eduardo Pérez (ESPN)
Hal Richman (Strat-O-Matic)
Eno Sarris (The Athletic)
Travis Sawchik (Driveline Baseball, MLB.com)
Bobby Scales (Tigers)
Mark Simon (Sports Info Solutions)
SIS Operations Staff
Below we show the final point tally for the 2026 Fielding Bible Awards. The 17-voter panel (16 people and a composite Operations Staff vote) ranks eligible players at each position from 1 to 5 based on their defensive abilities. We then awarded points for each vote: 5 points for a first place vote, 4 for second place, 3 for third place, 2 for fourth place, and 1 for fifth place. For player and team of the year, players are ranked 1 to 3 and receive 5 points for first place, 3 points for second place, and 1 point for 3rd place.
Position players are eligible if they played at least 600 innings, while catchers require a minimum of 500 innings. Either can qualify with 10 Runs Saved, as well. Pitchers require a minimum of 130 innings pitched or 5 Runs Saved.
For the Multi-Position Award, the panel votes on a list of players generated from a Defensive Versatility Score formula created by Bill James to measure a combination of defensive versatility and value. Eligible players include those who exhibit a high degree of positional versatility and value; players who usually play many positions over the course of the season, might move from position to position within a game, and have demonstrated the ability to handle high-leverage positions when the team needs him to.
For the Defensive Player of the Year Award, all players eligible for a Fielding Bible Award at an individual position can be voted on.
To view the individual ballots for our voters, please go to this link.
| Player of the Year | Points |
| Pete Crow Armstrong | 40 |
| Ceddanne Rafaela | 37 |
| Wilyer Abreu | 27 |
| Brice Turang | 15 |
| Dillon Dingler | 12 |
| Taylor Walls | 11 |
| Cody Bellinger | 6 |
| JJ Wetherholt | 3 |
| Bobby Witt Jr | 1 |
| Masyn Winn | 1 |
| Team of the Year | Points |
| Chicago Cubs | 63 |
| Tampa Bay Rays | 40 |
| Boston Red Sox | 15 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 12 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 7 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 6 |
| Chicago White Sox | 5 |
| Atlanta Braves | 3 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 2 |
| Catcher | Points |
| Dillon Dingler | 81 |
| Gabriel Moreno | 51 |
| Luis Torrens | 44 |
| Joe Mack | 24 |
| Brandon Valenzuela | 20 |
| Patrick Bailey | 11 |
| Austin Wells | 11 |
| Adley Rutschman | 10 |
| Henry Davis | 1 |
| Freddy Fermin | 1 |
| Austin Hedges | 1 |
| First Base | Points |
| Matt Olson | 76 |
| Ty France | 74 |
| Vladimir Guerrero Jr. | 42 |
| Christian Walker | 19 |
| Vinnie Pasquantino | 15 |
| T.J. Rumfield | 11 |
| Ildemaro Vargas | 5 |
| Alec Burleson | 4 |
| Freddie Freeman | 4 |
| Nick Kurtz | 3 |
| Paul Goldschmidt | 2 |
| Second Base | Points |
| Brice Turang | 84 |
| JJ Wetherholt | 51 |
| Brandon Lowe | 37 |
| Cole Young | 32 |
| Nasim Nunez | 24 |
| Nico Hoerner | 19 |
| Michael Massey | 3 |
| Ben Williamson | 2 |
| Ozzie Albies | 2 |
| Luis Arraez | 1 |
| Third Base | Points |
| Alex Bregman | 76 |
| Matt Chapman | 61 |
| Caleb Durbin | 53 |
| Maikel Garcia | 16 |
| Ke’Bryan Hayes | 12 |
| Manny Machado | 11 |
| Austin Riley | 8 |
| Javier Sanoja | 7 |
| Brooks Lee | 6 |
| Junior Caminero | 4 |
| Zack Gelof | 1 |
| Shortstop | Points |
| Taylor Walls | 69 |
| Masyn Winn | 62 |
| Bobby Witt Jr. | 51 |
| Geraldo Perdomo | 21 |
| Jose Caballero | 12 |
| Dansby Swanson | 9 |
| Otto Lopez | 9 |
| Zach Neto | 7 |
| Mookie Betts | 7 |
| Andres Gimenez | 5 |
| Joey Ortiz | 1 |
| Cooper Pratt | 1 |
| Colson Montgomery | 1 |
| Left Field | Points |
| Cody Bellinger | 82 |
| Jackson Chourio | 63 |
| Ian Happ | 45 |
| Chandler Simpson | 30 |
| Wyatt Langford | 20 |
| Daylen Lile | 10 |
| Jarren Duran | 3 |
| Bryan Reynolds | 2 |
| Center Field | Points |
| Ceddanne Rafaela | 74* |
| Pete Crow-Armstrong | 74 |
| Andy Pages | 53 |
| Michael Harris II | 33 |
| Evan Carter | 6 |
| Colton Cowser | 5 |
| Garrett Mitchell | 4 |
| Jackson Merrill | 3 |
| Cedric Mullins | 1 |
| Jacob Young | 1 |
| A.J. Ewing | 1 |
* Rafaela and Crow-Armstrong had the same distribution of first-, second-, third-, fourth- and fifth-place votes received. Rafaela won on Defensive Runs Saved tiebreaker.
| Right Field | Points |
| Wilyer Abreu | 81 |
| Corbin Carroll | 53 |
| Seiya Suzuki | 43 |
| Victor Mesa Jr. | 20 |
| Carson Benge | 20 |
| Nathan Lukes | 15 |
| Fernando Tatis Jr. | 7 |
| Zach McKinstry | 5 |
| Cam Smith | 5 |
| Sal Frelick | 3 |
| Jonny DeLuca | 3 |
| Pitcher | Points |
| Tanner Bibee | 58 |
| Shota Imanaga | 57 |
| Brent Suter | 48 |
| Michael McGreevy | 47 |
| Nolan McLean | 18 |
| Foster Griffin | 6 |
| Ranger Suarez | 5 |
| Seth Lugo | 4 |
| Colin Rea | 4 |
| Jesus Luzardo | 3 |
| Martin Perez | 3 |
| Emerson Hancock | 1 |
| Gavin Williams | 1 |
| Multi-Position | Points |
| Zach McKinstry | 48 |
| Steven Kwan | 43 |
| Jose Caballero | 37 |
| Nasim Nunez | 33 |
| Joey Ortiz | 16 |
| Mauricio Dubon | 14 |
| Ezequiel Duran | 12 |
| Kevin McGonigle | 11 |
| Jake McCarthy | 9 |
| Nico Hoerner | 7 |
| Jake Mangum | 5 |
| Javier Sanoja | 5 |
| Kody Clemens | 4 |
| Daniel Schneemann | 4 |
| Colson Montgomery | 3 |
| Zack Gelof | 3 |
| Tristan Peters | 1 |
Voters
Daniel Álvarez-Montes is the director and writer for El Extra Base, a website covering Latino baseball players and news. He is also an analyst for Univision Deportes Radio. Daniel is a member of the BBWAA and is of Venezuelan descent.
Ben Clemens has been a writer for FanGraphs since 2019. He authors the site’s annual Trade Value series, develops interactive data tools for the FanGraphs Lab, and won the 2023 SABR Analytics Conference Research Award for Contemporary Baseball Analysis, one of four times he’s been nominated for the award.
John Dewan is the co-founder and former CEO of Sports Info Solutions and the co-founder and former CEO of STATS Inc. He has focused his baseball analytics work on defense and has authored or co-authored five volumes of The Fielding Bible. He currently sponsors the annual John Dewan Defensive Analytics Award at the Society for Advanced Baseball Research (SABR). He and his wife Sue now work in give-back mode, primarily through the Dewan Foundation providing hope and a future to those in poverty.
Chris Dial has been studying defensive statistics since 1996, and he developed Runs Effectively Defended (RED). He has written predominantly at Baseball Think Factory and at Mets360.com. He is a member of the SABR Defensive Index (SDI) Committee, which plays a large role in the voting for the Gold Glove awards.
Patrick Dubuque is managing editor of Baseball Prospectus. He lives in the Pacific Northwest with his wife and two children and spends a surprising amount of his daily life being instructed about dinosaurs.
Alyson Footer is the executive editor of national content for MLB.com. She began her career in media relations with the Astros before joining MLB.com in 2001 to cover the Astros as a beat reporter. She served as the Astros’ social media director from 2009-12 and then rejoined MLB.com as a national correspondent.
Chelsea Janes joined SNY as an MLB Insider in 2026. She came to SNY after 12 years at the Washington Post, the last five as national baseball writer.
Tyler Kepner is a senior national baseball writer for The Athletic and the author of the books K and The Grandest Stage. He previously spent 23 years covering baseball for The New York Times.
Bill Ladson, a member of the BBWAA since 2015, has been a reporter/editor since 1988. His stories can be seen on MLB.com, Baseball Digest, Yardbarker and MLBbro.com. He is a proud Baruch College alum.
Do-Hyoung Park is a Statcast Data and Gaming Engineer for Major League Baseball who works as part of the Baseball Savant team. Prior to that, he spent six years as a beat writer for the Twins at MLB.com.
Eduardo Pérez played 13 seasons in the major leagues as a first baseman, third baseman, and corner outfielder. He also coached for the Marlins and Astros and managed the Colombian team in the World Baseball Classic. He currently is a baseball analyst for ESPN and a co-host of The Leadoff Spot on Sirius XM. He is the president of the Baseball Assistance Team, which offers financial assistance to retired baseball players. His father, Tony Pérez, is a Baseball Hall of Famer.
Hal Richman is the founder of the popular baseball game Strat-O-Matic. He and members of his company incorporate information from Sports Info Solutions into their player ratings. Hal cautions SOM players that his voting on this ballot may or may not reflect the eventual fielding ratings for players in his game. Ballots were due prior to the completion of his annual research effort to evaluate player defense.
Eno Sarris is a senior writer covering baseball analytics at The Athletic. Eno has written for FanGraphs, ESPN, Fox, MLB.com, SB Nation and others.
Travis Sawchik is a writer for Driveline Baseball and MLB.com. He’s previously been a beat writer covering the Pirates for The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and a baseball writer for FiveThirtyEight and The Score. He’s the author of the book Big Data Baseball and co-author of The MVP Machine.
Bobby Scales played pro baseball from 1999 to 2012, including two seasons with the Cubs. He is currently a radio broadcaster for the Tigers. After his playing career, he served as the Director of Player Development and later, Special Assistant to the General Manager for the Angels. He served as the Minor League Field Coordinator and Coordinator of Strategic Initiatives for Player Development for the Pirates. He was formerly a vice-president of baseball at Sports Info Solutions.
Mark Simon is head of editorial for Sports Info Solutions. He’s been with Sports Info Solutions since 2018 after a 6 1/2 year run as a sportswriter for The Trenton Times and almost 16 years as a researcher at ESPN. He is the author of the book, The Yankees Index.
SIS Operations Staff study every game of the MLB season multiple times, charting a huge list of valuable game details.
