By Townhall Chicago News Staff
Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and third baseman Alex Bregman each won their second career Rawlings Gold Glove Award on Sunday night, headlining a historically strong defensive season for the franchise.
The awards cap a 2026 campaign in which the Cubs led the majors and set single-season Statcast-era records with a plus-72 fielding run value and plus-72 outs above average as a team.
Crow-Armstrong led all major league position players with plus-26 outs above average, tying Byron Buxton’s 2017 mark for the most by an outfielder since Statcast began tracking the statistic. His plus-26 fielding run value set a new record for outfielders in the Statcast era, according to MLB.com.
“The standard he’s set defensively is really incredible,” Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said at the end of the season, according to MLB.com. “That allows us to build the kind of team we want to build around defense.”
Bregman, who previously won a Gold Glove with the Houston Astros in 2024, posted a plus-7 fielding run value and plus-9 outs above average in his first season at the hot corner for the North Siders. He joins Hall of Famer Ron Santo as the only Cubs third basemen to win the award.
“It’s a point of emphasis for us as a ballclub,” Bregman said Sunday, according to MLB.com. “From top to bottom in the organization, we take pride in the defense and trying to save as many runs as possible.”
Three other Cubs were Gold Glove finalists but did not win: shortstop Dansby Swanson, left fielder Ian Happ and right fielder Seiya Suzuki. The Cubs and Toronto Blue Jays tied for the most finalists in baseball with five.
Crow-Armstrong delivered one of the most complete seasons in recent memory, becoming only the seventh player in major league history to hit at least 40 home runs and steal at least 40 bases in a single season. He is widely expected to win the National League MVP award.
“It was incredible,” Bregman said of Crow-Armstrong’s defense, according to MLB.com. “To be there every day and watch him go about his business and watch him just take extra-base hit after extra-base hit away, it’s pretty special.”
Crow-Armstrong returned the compliment.
“Pretty early on, a lot of us were kind of turning our heads and just being like, ‘Wow,'” Crow-Armstrong said, according to MLB.com. “The plays on the run are ridiculous. He was the most deserving of this award this year by far.”
Separately, Cubs top prospect Josiah Hartshorn won a Minor League Gold Glove as the top defensive first baseman across all minor league levels. Hartshorn committed just five errors at first base and none in 21 games in center field while posting a .925 OPS with 23 home runs and 112 RBIs across three levels, according to MLB.com.
Rawlings and Minor League Baseball announced the nine-player crop of 2026 Minor League Gold Glove winners on Sunday. Hartshorn’s selection adds to the organization’s defensive reputation heading into 2027.
The Platinum Glove Award, given to the best overall defender in each league, has not yet been announced. Fans can vote for Crow-Armstrong or Bregman at Rawlings’ website.
