11/02/2005 3:35 PM ET Matheny, Vizquel: Patented leather Catcher wins fourth Gold Glove, shortstop grabs 10th By John Schlegel / MLB.com When shortstop Omar Vizquel and catcher Mike Matheny came to the Giants last winter, their resumes were already full of Gold Glove credentials. Apparently, there was room for more. You can add another line to each of those golden resumes, with special mention for Vizquel as the first Giants shortstop to win a Gold Glove Award and the 10th player ever to win Gold Gloves in both leagues. Vizquel and Matheny were honored as National League recipients of the Gold Glove Award, given annually by the Rawlings Sporting Goods Co. to the top fielders in each league as judged by opposing managers and coaches. For Vizquel, this is Gold Glove No. 10 and his first since 2001, the previous nine coming while he patrolled shortstop for the Indians (eight) and Mariners (one). For Matheny, this marks his fourth honor and third consecutive, his first three coming while he worked behind the plate for the Cardinals. By claiming the award in a Giants uniform, Vizquel filled the last position where a Giants player had not previously won a Gold Glove. Vizquel passed Luis Aparicio to take over second place all-time among shortstops with his 10 Gold Gloves, behind only Ozzie Smith's 13. Vizquel also joins Giants first baseman J.T. Snow among the 10 players who have won in both leagues. In 2005, Vizquel established a Giants single-season record for his position and led all Major League shortstops by posting .98802 fielding percentage, committing just eight errors in 668 total chances. Chris Speier held the previous Giants mark, logging a .982 mark in 1975. On top of that, Vizquel impressed his teammates, who got to see him play defense on an everyday basis for the first time. "It's pretty much guaranteed that he's going to have one play a night that's pretty spectacular," Giants starter Brett Tomko said. Added manager Felipe Alou: "He's as good as anybody I've ever seen. He makes incredible plays, but he also makes all the routine plays. I've seen him every day make plays -- big plays, too. Barehanded plays, backhanded plays, over the bag at second base, double plays." Matheny also made his presence known in his first year with the Giants, and not just with his exploits on defense. While putting up his best offensive season, Matheny's impact in the clubhouse earned him the "Willie Mac Award" for the most inspirational player on the club. But Matheny's reputation was built on defense, and he certainly didn't disappoint there. In fact, he posted the highest single-season fielding percentage for a catcher in San Francisco Giants history, logging a .999 mark with just one error in 862 total chances. His 1,122 innings caught rank fourth in Giants history since they came to the West Coast, and he led all NL catchers by throwing out 30 attempted base stealers, ranking third in the league by nailing 32.3 percent of the 93 attempts against him. Matheny's work behind the plate more than lived up to his reputation, with the Giants' pitchers routinely calling out the catcher for special recognition. "I want to start with Matheny behind the plate -- unbelievable back there," said lefty Noah Lowry after one of his gems. When asked what might be behind his own outstanding season, reliever Scott Eyre said, "The first thing that comes to my mind is Matheny. I know he doesn't want to take any of the credit; that's just how he is. "But when you hear all the things that I heard about him in the offseason, and then you see his work ethic, the way he studies hitters, his approach to it -- I've probably pitched in more to hitters this summer than I ever have. I trust him. He calls a fastball in and I throw it there without any reservation." The greatest measure of fielding excellence since 1957, the prestigious Gold Glove Award is presented annually to 18 players, one from each position, in both leagues. These outstanding players are selected as the best fielding players at their respective positions by Major League coaches and managers prior to the conclusion of the regular season. Managers and coaches may not select players from their own club and vote only for players in their own league. John Schlegel is a reporter for MLB.com. Chris Shuttlesworth contributed to this report. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs. -- 庵的網路相簿 請多支持!! http://www.wretch.cc/album/AKFEighteen --

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