Logan Baldwin wins Gold Glove as Minors’ best right fielder

Folks around northwestern Georgia already knew that former Ringgold Tiger baseball player Logan Baldwin could hit the ball.

This past season, he also showed he could flash a little leather too.

Baldwin was one of nine recipients of the 2018 Rawlings Gold Glove Award for defensive excellence on Monday. The awards were jointly announced by Minor League Baseball and the Rawlings Sporting Goods Company. According to the milb.com website, the winners at each position were selected from players in the 10 domes- tic-based, full-season minor leagues.

A right fielder for the Class A Augusta Green Jackets this past season, Baldwin recorded 13 outfield assists with a .991 fielding percentage in 100 games, making just two errors in 220 total chances. The 22-year-old was selected by the San Francisco Giants in the 21st round of the 2017 draft out of Georgia Southern University.

“I had just hung up from talking to my dad when my phone buzzed,” Baldwin explained. “I got a text saying that milb.com had just tweeted out a photo of me. That’s when it had popped up and at first I thought it was just a photo until I got to reading it.”

The Gold Glove added to Baldwin’s already impressive minor league resume. He won a batting title in the Class A Northwest League in Oregon during his year first season as a professional.

According to the press release, each player will receive a Rawlings Gold Glove Award, modeled after the award given to Major League Baseball’s top defensive players.

“It was a surprise to me,” Baldwin continued. “I didn’t even know Gold Gloves were given out in Minor League Baseball, but it’s really cool to be able to win one. I’ve been a good defensive player ever since I was little.