Texas Rangers: Gallo and Kiner-Falefa officially honored as "Golden Boys"

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Prior to last night’s thrilling 8-6 win over the ever-pesky Boston Red Sox, the Texas Rangers took some time to honor two award winners from last year’s season.

Joey Gallo and Isiah Kiner-Falefa – both recipients of Gold Gloves due to their elite defensive production during the shortened 2020 campaign.

The pair of fan-favorites got their beautifully golden trophies delivered to them in front of the Rangers faithful, with the team dubbing them “The Golden Boys”:

The Golden Boys (2020) pic.twitter.com/SIQoqVlatd
— Texas Rangers (@Rangers) May 1, 2021

The Texas Rangers finally got to see their Gold Glovers awarded last night.

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Regardless if you feel awards won during the 2020 season deserve an asterisk or not, the defensive level at which both Gallo and Kiner-Falefa played at last year definitely deserves some recognition. They were two bright (golden?) spots on a rather uncompetitive Texas squad, and their consistent level of play on the defensive side of the ball was rightfully noted by the rest of the league.

Joey Gallo, RF

Looking first at Joey Gallo and the season he had in right field, I think it’s pretty safe to say that no-one really expected the veteran outfielder to be in the conversation for a full-on Gold Glove by season’s end.

While he’s always been rather serviceable in the outfield, he’s never particularly reached that “elite” tier defensive status that typically comes with winning hardware.

However, Gallo showed up and put in some seriously impressive defensive play over the course of 57 games. He finished the year leading all outfielders with 12 defensive runs saved, and actually had the second highest DRS total in all of baseball (only Nolan Arenado had more last season).

Albeit overshadowed by his bat at times, Gallo’s defensive performance in 2020 was by far the best of his career – well worth the Gold.

ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 19: Isiah Kiner-Falefa #9 of the Texas Rangers makes a throw to first base against the Los Angeles Angels during the fifth inning at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on April 19, 2021 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images) /

Isiah Kiner-Falefa, 3B

2020 was Kiner-Falefa’s first season operating as a full-time infielder, which promptly saw him receive a Gold Glove for the first time in his very young career.

In the years leading up to 2020, Kiner-Falefa bounced all over the place in terms of his defense. He saw reps at second base, shortstop, third base, and even catcher between 2018 and 2019. While Kiner-Falefa still ended up playing a bit of SS this past season, settling into a more consistent role at third clearly allowed him to play a more relaxed game on the defensive side of things.

Kiner-Falefa logged 366.1 innings at the hot corner in 2020, recording 32 putouts and 79 assists – compared to just five errors. The 26 year old also finished among the top ten infielders in regards to Statcast’s “Outs Above Average” metric.

An impressive stretch of ball for the former fourth-round pick.

While Kiner-Falefa obviously thrived playing 3B this past season, the Texas Rangers have primarily been playing him back at shortstop here in 2021. His fielding percentage is currently a career-high at the position (.975), but he’s already logged 3 errors. It’s unlikely that he’ll be moving back to third anytime soon with Culberson and Holt on the roster, so my guess is that the Rangers are simply expecting him to continue developing as a “plus” defensive option at SS.

dark. Next. Texas Rangers: Nick Solak named AL’s top 2B through the month of April

Regardless, Kiner-Falefa’s year-long defense at third this past season was exceptional, and it was awarded appropriately by the MLB.

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Texas Rangers: Gallo and Kiner-Falefa officially honored as “Golden Boys”

The Texas Rangers finally got to see their Gold Glovers awarded last night.

More from Nolan Writin'

Joey Gallo, RF

Isiah Kiner-Falefa, 3B

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