These rookies took home a Gold Glove

If it seems like there are more rookies being considered for the Rawlings Gold Glove Award these days, that's because there are. After three rookies won a Gold Glove in 2022 -- the most since the award's inception in 1957 -- the Rockies' Brenton Doyle and Yankees' Anthony Volpe took home the award in 2023 and Boston's Wilyer Abreu claimed the honor in 2024.

This increase in youthful nominees may be the result of a change in the voting criteria. For more than 50 years, Gold Glove winners were decided solely by ballots cast by managers and coaches who selected from a pool of players in their league at each position, excluding players from their own team. Those votes still comprise 75% of the selection total, but since 2013, an objective component -- the SABR Defensive Index -- has counted for the other 25%.

• 2024 Gold Glove Award winners

Prior to 2013, only nine rookies had been recognized with a Gold Glove. That total is now up to 18. Here is the full list of rookie Gold Glove Award winners.

? All-time Gold Glove winners

2024: Wilyer Abreu (BOS), AL RF
Abreu was a defensive star in his first full big league season, becoming the first Red Sox rookie to win a Gold Glove Award since Fred Lynn in 1975. The 24-year-old Abreu led all right fielders with 17 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS), while his nine outfield assists and seven Outs Above Average (OAA) were each tied for the most by any player at the position.

2023: Brenton Doyle (COL), NL CF; Anthony Volpe (NYY), AL SS

Doyle was a human highlight reel who consistently flashed elite defense throughout the season. It wasn't just the eye test -- Doyle was near the top of the Majors in every meaningful defensive measure. By Statcast's Fielding Run Value, Doyle was tops in the Majors with +21 runs added while he led all MLB outfielders in OAA (+16) and Ultimate Zone Rating (+24.5). Volpe was no slouch himself, finishing third among shortstops with +15 Defensive Runs Saved and becoming the first Yankees rookie to win the award.

2022: Steven Kwan (CLE), AL LF; Jeremy Pe?a (HOU), AL SS; Brendan Donovan (STL), NL UT

The defense provided by these rookies helped propel their respective clubs to the postseason, with Pe?a’s Astros ultimately winning the World Series. He was the first Astros player and the first shortstop to win a Gold Glove as a rookie. Speaking of firsts, Donovan was the National League’s first utility Gold Glove Award winner after playing every position except center field, catcher and pitcher. Kwan’s 12 Outs Above Average were the most by a left fielder since the metric was introduced in 2016. He also ranked third among all players with 21 Defensive Runs Saved.

2020: Luis Robert Jr. (CWS), AL CF; Evan White (SEA), AL 1B

Robert’s raw power probably overshadowed his glove work during the shortened 2020 season. After all, he did launch the second-longest homer of the year (postseason included). But his +6 OAA tied for the most by an AL center fielder. No first baseman surpassed White in either OAA (+5) or DRS (+7). He made only one error in 443 innings at first.

2013: Nolan Arenado (COL), NL 3B

Is Arenado the best third baseman of his generation? It’s worth debating. But there’s no question that he is his generation’s standard bearer when it comes to defense at the hot corner. Arenado got a Gold Glove in each of his first 10 years in the big leagues. The only other player to accomplish that is next on this list.

2001: Ichiro Suzuki (SEA), AL OF

Ichiro authored an iconic defensive play in Oakland on April 11, 2001, just eight games into his MLB career.

The scene: A’s outfielder Terrence Long was looking to advance from first to third on a base hit to right field in the eighth inning. That’s when Ichiro gathered the ball and, in the words of legendary Mariners radio announcer Dave Niehaus, ”threw something out of Star Wars down there at third base.” Long was out by a comfortable margin, and the league was put on notice about running on the phenom. Ichiro collected a Gold Glove, AL Rookie of the Year, AL MVP and a Silver Slugger in a rookie season for the ages.

1995: Charles Johnson (MIA), NL C

The Marlins, established in 1993, had three Gold Gloves through the first 10 years of their existence. They all belonged to the same player: Johnson. He received the award each year from 1995-97. He won it again in 1998, but that is technically a piece of Dodgers history since Johnson was traded to Los Angeles in May.

1990: Sandy Alomar Jr. (CLE), AL C

Cleveland’s great teams of the 1990s featured a lot of terrific defense; the franchise amassed 13 Gold Gloves during the decade, beginning with Alomar in 1990. Before then, Cleveland hadn’t fielded a Gold Glove player since 1976. Alomar started the ‘90 All-Star Game, becoming the first rookie catcher to do so, and was the unanimous AL Rookie of the Year.

1975: Fred Lynn (BOS), AL OF

Before Ichiro, Lynn stood alone as the player who took home a Rookie of the Year Award and an MVP Award in the same season. He also won his first of four Gold Gloves. Lynn displayed the skills that made him worthy of that honor with a game-saving catch in the ninth inning that helped the Red Sox triumph in Game 4 of the 1975 World Series.

1972: Carlton Fisk (BOS), AL C

Fisk opened 1972 as a backup in Boston, but he became a starter in April and would construct arguably the greatest season by a rookie catcher in AL/NL history. His 162 OPS+ and 7.3 bWAR stand as rookie records at the position, and his 59 extra-base hits were the most until Mike Piazza came along in 1993. This tremendous year included the first and only Gold Glove of Fisk’s Hall of Fame career.

1968: Johnny Bench (CIN), NL C

Bench’s first full season marked the dawn of an era at his position and for his team. Starting in ‘68, Bench collected the NL Gold Glove at catcher for 10 consecutive years. During that decade, Bench was a leader of Cincinnati’s “Big Red Machine,” which won four pennants and two World Series titles.

1966: Tommie Agee (CWS), AL OF

Agee’s defensive abilities are the stuff of World Series legend; his two incredible catches in Game 3 of the 1969 Fall Classic possibly saved five runs and were instrumental as the Mets won the game and, two days later, the series. Three years earlier, Agee received a Gold Glove, the AL Rookie of the Year Award and a top-10 finish in the AL MVP voting with the White Sox.

1962: Ken Hubbs (CHC), NL 2B

Playing alongside Hall of Fame infielders Ernie Banks and Ron Santo, Hubbs garnered rave reviews for his defense on Chicago's North Side. That was a primary reason why he won the NL Rookie of the Year Award as well as a Gold Glove in ‘62. However, Hubbs' career was tragically cut short when he died in a plane crash in 1964. He was 22 years old.

1957: Frank Malzone (BOS), MLB 3B

In its inaugural year, the Gold Glove Award recognized the top fielders in the American and National Leagues collectively. Five of the nine winners were Hall of Famers: Willie Mays, Al Kaline, Gil Hodges, Nellie Fox and Minnie Mi?oso. Malzone, the only rookie* on the initial Gold Glove team, led all third basemen in assists (370) and double plays turned (31). He earned the AL Gold Glove at third base in 1958 and ‘59, before Orioles legend Brooks Robinson broke onto the scene and proceeded to win that honor for the next 16 years.

*Malzone exceeded his rookie eligibility in 1956 according to the guidelines used at that time and is not considered a 1957 rookie by the Elias Sports Bureau. However, he would qualify as a rookie for that season under the current eligibility guidelines.