The League's Best Fielders

Who really praises the magicians of defense? Everyone knows that the Golden Glove awards weigh fielding percentage and showmanship above quickness and instincts. In fact, it's not the names of the true defensive dynamos that surprise us; it's how often they're slighted by CBL Awards Committees. What we really need is an award that honors unadulterated fielding prowess.

Range, throwing arm, the headiness of the ballplayer: all these intangibles should be involved in considering a player. How an outfielder plays hitters, how strong his arm is, how often he hits the cutoff man - these are the things that should be taken into consideration. These are precisely the things that do not show up in the statistics.

That was the rationale behind assembling the list below. Here you will find the true champions of the diamond. These outstanding individuals were judged and selected as the best fielders for their respective positions by major league coaches, players and sportswriters. Inclusion on this list represents the ultimate in major league fielding excellence.

FA = Fielding Ability; AS = Arm Strength; RT = Reaction Time

CBL Biorhythm: Top Fielders
 PitcherFAASRT
1.Ed Spies (PEI)99930
2.Burleigh Lawrence (PEI)99860
3.Che Christianson (PEI)99760
4.Rod Almonte (WES)99740
5.Kevin Clinkscales (YEL)90890
CBL Biorhythm: Top Fielders
 CatcherFAASRT
1.Paul Brown (POR)889860
2.Clint Sweeten (MOO)918651
3.Kirk Swihart (COB)769847
4.Simon Lene (QUE)976855
5.Chris Frunderburk (CHA)927629
 
CBL Biorhythm: Top Fielders
 First BasemanFAASRT
1.Kris Plank (COB)977646
2.Steve Wills (CRE)846976
3.Bronson Lewis (CRE)905642
4.Cameron Seed (OWE)816766
5.Eugene Dunlop (QUE)806559
CBL Biorhythm: Top Fielders
 Second BasemanFAASRT
1.Clint Harmison (KEL)858591
2.Garth Alcala (SAS)995458
3.Kevin Hammond (OTT)926460
4.Brock Zuber (POR)798083
5.Shaun Moyes (VIC)828463
 
CBL Biorhythm: Top Fielders
 Third BasemanFAASRT
1.Kayne Motty (OWE)859264
2.ThreeFinger Plunk (OWE)898452
3.James Vogeler (VAL)957047
4.Felix DeBruyn (YEL)857671
5.Lance Kelly (VAL)729955
CBL Biorhythm: Top Fielders
 ShortstopFAASRT
1.Kerrod Espley (PEI)977777
2.Kiel Afile (COL)888276
3.Chris Baker (CHA)827899
4.Tomas McLemore (VIC)848269
5.Miguel Macias (FRE)719678
 
CBL Biorhythm: Top Fielders
 Left FielderFAASRT
1.Kieran Luthi (LET)948264
2.Marino Chapman (VAL)945586
3.Steve Atiwell (LON)917867
4.James Clark (HAL)826495
5.Joe Henander (LET)906278
CBL Biorhythm: Top Fielders
 Center FielderFAASRT
1.Edvin Demers (OWE)937680
2.Matt Maurer (CRE)946375
3.Marcel Orren (WES)718390
4.Marcus Ferrel (FOR)658398
5.Matteya Sekimoto (REG)805894
 
CBL Biorhythm: Top Fielders
 Right FielderFAASRT
1.Steve Ludlam (POR)817480
2.Trevor Brea (VIC)837959
3.Pedro Eyre (CHA)826180
4.Jason Goff (VAL)627690
5.Sherry Simon (HAL)608086