Fielding Bible Awards name 2026 defensive standouts across every MLB position

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

Major League Baseball’s premier defensive honours were announced Thursday as the Fielding Bible Awards recognized the top fielders across every position for the 2026 season. Now in its 21st year, the awards select one player at each of the nine standard fielding positions—catcher through right field—along with a multi-position winner, an overall Defensive Player of the Year, and a Defensive Team of the Year. Sports Info Solutions (SIS) is the presenting organization, and the winners are determined by a panel of experts using a combination of statistics, an “eye test,” and any additional factors the panel chooses to consider.

At catcher, the 2026 winner was Dillon Dingler of the Tigers. The release notes that no Tigers catcher had previously won a Fielding Bible Award since Ivan Rodriguez won the first such award in 2006, a streak that Dingler’s 2026 performance ended. Dingler led all catchers with 15 defensive runs saved (DRS) for the season, according to the awards’ results.

First base honours went to Matt Olson of the Braves. The Fielding Bible Award at first base was decided in a “very tight race” against the Padres’ Ty France, with Olson taking his sixth Fielding Bible Award at the position. The release says Olson surpassed Albert Pujols for the most wins at first base, and it also identifies Olson as tying for second most all-time at the spot with Yadier Molina and Andrelton Simmons, trailing only Mookie Betts, who is listed as having seven.

In the infield at second base, Brice Turang of the Brewers was named the winner for 2026. While Milwaukee is described as having a reputation in the release, it highlights that Turang is actually the first Brewer to win a Fielding Bible Award since 2019, when Lorenzo Cain won in center field. For 2026, Turang ranked second in Major League Baseball with 23 defensive runs saved.

Third base went to Alex Bregman of the Cubs. The release states that Bregman led all third basemen with 15 DRS and won his first Fielding Bible Award at that position. It also notes this is Bregman’s 11th Major League season and that it marks the Cubs’ first Fielding Bible Award at third base.

For shortstop, the winner was Taylor Walls of the Rays. The release says Walls tied for third in the majors and then “lapped the field” at short with 21 defensive runs saved, adding that no other player had more than 13 at the position. It also identifies this as Tampa Bay’s first Fielding Bible Award at short since 2020, when Kevin Kiermaier won in center field.

Left field honours were awarded to Cody Bellinger of the Yankees. The release says Bellinger returned to the winner’s circle for the first time since 2019, when he won both right field and the multi-position award. For 2026, Bellinger compiled 21 DRS, tying for third across Major League Baseball in the release’s position results.

Center field produced one of the most notable results of the announcement, including a mathematical tie on first-place votes between Ceddanne Rafaela of the Red Sox and Pete Crow-Armstrong (often referenced as PCA) of the Cubs. The release states that both players finished with eight first-place votes, seven second-place votes and two third-place votes, and that Rafaela won the positional award based on a DRS tiebreaker. It specifies that Rafaela had 21 DRS compared to PCA’s 16.

Right field was named for Wilyer Abreu of the Red Sox. The release says Abreu led Major League Baseball in 2026 with 28 defensive runs saved, which it describes as five more than any other player. Abreu wins his second Fielding Bible Award, and the announcement notes that the outcome also gives the Red Sox a majority among the outfield winners.

On the pitching side, the Fielding Bible Award for pitcher went to Tanner Bibee of the Guardians. The release notes that Bibee remains the only Guardians pitcher to have won a Fielding Bible Award, stating that this is his second such award after winning in 2024.

In the multi-position category, Zach McKinstry of the Tigers was named the winner for 2026. The release describes it as McKinstry’s first Fielding Bible Award, and it identifies him as the sixth player in as many seasons to win in the multi-position category. It also notes that McKinstry is one of two Tigers to win a Fielding Bible Award since 2015, with the other being Riley Greene, who won in left field in 2024.

Defensive Player of the Year—listed in the announcement as the Player of the Year award—went to Pete Crow-Armstrong of the Cubs. While Rafaela won the center field position award on the DRS tiebreaker, the overall player-of-the-year vote is described as being open to players at all positions, allowing Crow-Armstrong to secure the top honour regardless of the positional result. The release includes a comment from SIS VP of analytics Joe Rosales, who said, “We understand the split vote between PCA and Rafaela may seem counterintuitive at first, but ultimately it reflects how historically close the vote was. Given the extremely tight margins, and given how great a season both players had, it seems only fitting that both players are getting honored with an award. Congratulations to both Pete and Ceddanne!”

The final category announced was Defensive Team of the Year, with the Cubs receiving the award. The release says the Cubs are now 2-for-2 in Team of the Year awards since Sports Info Solutions introduced the category in 2025. It also states that Chicago finished the regular season with 115 DRS, which the release frames as 28 more than any other club.