AL Gives Out Gold Gloves
Rafael Palmeiro won his third straight American League Gold Glove at first base despite playing just 28 games at the position this year.
Palmeiro, who was a designated hitter for Texas in 128 games, joined Rangers catcher Ivan Rodriguez, who won his eighth straight Gold Glove, among the winners announced Tuesday by Rawlings.
Palmeiro, his time in the field limited by a pair of athroscopic knee operations before the season, had one error in 275 chances at first. He hit .324 with 47 home runs and 148 RBIs.
Gold Gloves are voted on by major league managers and coaches before the end of the regular season.
Seattle's Ken Griffey Jr. won his 10th straight Gold Glove and outfielder Shawn Green, who agreed to an $84 million, six-year contract after Toronto traded him to Los Angeles on Monday, won his first.
Cleveland second baseman Roberto Alomar got his eighth, while Indians shortstop Omar Vizquel won his seventh straight, an AL record. Shortstop Ozzie Smith set the NL mark of 13 in a row from 1980-92.
Two members of the World Series champion New York Yankees also got Gold Gloves: outfielder Bernie Williams won his third straight and third baseman Scott Brosius won his first.
Alomar gets a $100,000 bonus for winning, while Brosius, Green, Griffey Palmeiro, Rodriguez and Vizquel each gets $50,000.
National League Gold Glove winners are announced Wednesday.
©1999 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed