Bleacher Report's AL, NL Defensive Player of the Year Awards

Quick, who won last season's Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Award? No fair looking it up.

If your answer was, "I had no idea that award existed," you aren't alone. Despite increasing acceptance of advanced defensive metrics and a league-wide emphasis on glove work and run prevention, baseball still doesn't have a defensive prize on par with the Most Valuable Player and Cy Young awards.

Yes, Gold Gloves are handed out at each position. And while there have been some epically head-scratching past winners, they're still shorthand for exemplary leather.

But the Gold Gloves are akin to doling out nine MVPs. It dilutes the honor and fails to pinpoint the overall best defender in both leagues—the Goldest of Gloves, if you will.

Into that void, allow us to introduce Bleacher Report's 2015 American League and National League Defensive Players of the Year.

To determine the winners, plus a slate of runners-up and honorable mentions, we'll weigh three factors, presented here in descending order of importance:

• Defensive statistics: This is the big one, and it will account for the bulk of our decision-making. We'll focus on the aforementioned advanced metrics—including ultimate zone rating (UZR), defensive runs saved (DRS) and defensive wins above replacement (dwAR)—rather than more archaic measures like fielding percentage, using data from FanGraphs and Baseball-Reference. (See the next slide for a breakdown of the stats and what they mean.)
• Difficulty of position: Slick fielding is a plus anywhere on the diamond, but certain positions—catcher, shortstop and center field, to name the big three—are more difficult and, simply put, more important.
• Star wattage/eyeball test: This will be used sparingly, but it matters a little. As FanGraphs puts it in the explanation for UZR, "You might be able to judge a single play better than the metrics (although that’s debatable), but your ability to recall every play and compare them is limited." Therefore, no one will cruise on his reputation or a few highlight-worthy plays alone. But every award has to allow for a little gut feeling and subjectivity.

Proceed when ready, and feel free to vehemently disagree—and offer your own selections—in the comments.

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