There are some many reasons why Angels vs. Yankees is the best match-up of the 2005 Baseball Playoffs: East Coast vs. West Coast, defensive vs. .offensive prowess, Bronx Bombers vs. Disneyland Halos. But there is one reason that you may not know about; these teams have the two best shortstops in the American League, who are in contention for this year’s Gold Glove.

Baseball is such a great sport because it doesn't look like any other sport; it is unlike any other team sport; its basic rules are very different from any other ball game (except for cricket!)   Baseball has simple rules that can be adapted by a bunch of kids for a street or back-lot pick-up game. But those simple rules create complex strategic situations that give any sportsman plenty to get passionate about. I think this is why the manager gets to wear a team uniform; He needs to be in the field of battle with his troops. And you don’t wear a blazer into warfare, even if it is conducted in a gentlemanly manner. You wear what your troops are wearing!

If you are crazy about baseball it is probably because you have discovered that there is so much more to the game: The history, the legends and of course “the stats!” If you know anything about baseball, you would have to agree that the defensive stats are all that should count in order to pick a Gold Glove. Especially for the shortstop! If that were the case, Orlando Cabrera would be the American League 2005 Gold Glove. He has already won one in 2001 in the National League. But the Gold Gloves get chosen by team managers and coaches who let other factors influence their decision. It’s clear that Derek Jeter will be 2005 AL Gold Glove. He won it last year. He also has the offensive numbers and the star power.

Why is this so interesting to me? Because since 1957, when the Gold Gloves began to be awarded, out of 93 shortstop Gold Gloves, 25 have been given to Luis Aparicio, Dave Concepcion, Ozzie Guillen, Omar Vizquel, and Cesar Isturiz. These are all Venezuelan shortstops. They have won 27% of all shortstop Gold Gloves. That is an impressive number when you consider that over the same period of time they have comprised less than 5% of all Major League shortstops. Why have they been such good shortstops? As kids they were all inspired by the first Latin American player ever picked for an All Star Game: Alfonso "Chico" Carrasquel who never won a shortstop Gold Glove because his best years were from 1950 to 1955 when he played for the Chicago White Sox. By the way, that’s the same White Sox that Ozzie Guillen has managed into the postseason as the first ever Major League manager from Venezuela!

If you are still with me and you know that Cartagena and Caracas are not in the same South American country, you might be wondering why I am so interested in Orlando Cabrera. Well, watch him play! He is not flashy. In fact, his teammates call him boring. But he approaches every fielding with textbook consistency. As he best puts it, his job is to rob the opposing team of hits. What makes him a rarity is that he hails from Colombia, a country where soccer truly rules. He is one of only two players from that country in Major League Baseball. That is a very impressive stat!

Labels: baseball, sport