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PITTSBURGH -- Pittsburgh's Ke'Bryan Hayes was named the winner of the Fielding Bible Award among third basemen in Major League Baseball.
Hayes was also named the Fielding Bible's first ever Defensive Player-of-the-Year. This is the second time in three seasons Hayes has earned Fielding Bible Award accolades after also doing so in 2021.
The 26-year-old Hayes led all third basemen in MLB this season with 21 defensive runs saved according to the Fielding Bible (the next closest player was Colorado's Ryan McMahon with 17).
Hayes, who is also a finalist for a Rawlings Gold Glove Award, also ranked fourth in defensive runs saved (21) regardless of position according to the Fielding Bible in 2023, trailing only Daulton Varsho (29), Fernando Tatis Jr. (27) and Andres Gimenez (23). Since breaking into the big leagues in 2020, Hayes ranks first among all third basemen in MLB with 65 defensive runs saved according to the Fielding Bible (the next closest player is Ryan McMahon with 43).
Steals, averages up
ARLINGTON, Texas -- Stolen bases and batting averages are up and game times are down in the first postseason with the pitch clock and larger bases.
There have been an average of 1.4 steals per game through the League Championship Series, up from 0.8 through last year's LCS. The Arizona Diamondbacks, who play the Texas Rangers in the World Series beginning tonight, lead all postseason teams with 1.6 steals per game.
"It's our identity now," said Arizona's Christian Walker, tied for the team lead with four steals in 12 postseason games. "It's contagious. You want to be a part of it. You want to be in mix. You want to be out there creating chaos and havoc on the bases."
The overall postseason batting average has climbed from .213 to .241, and the batting average for left-handed hitters has risen from .217 to .244 in the first year with defensive shift limits, although with the small sample size, any changes may be an aberration.
The average game time is 3 hours, 2 minutes, a decrease from 3:22 for nine-inning games during the first three rounds of the 2022 postseason and from 3:40 in 2021 through the LCS.
Just seven pitch-clock violations have been called through 36 postseason games.
Stolen base attempts are up significantly, rising from 1.1 per game to 1.6.