How this forgotten Guardians infielder could end up making Gold Glove history

With every passing day, Ernie Clement is beginning to look more and more like the one who got away for the Cleveland Guardians. 

Clement played 103 games with the Guardians across parts of two seasons before they released him near the end of their 2022 season as a part of their postseason preparation. 

That set off a whirlwind 12 months for Clement, who was quickly claimed by the A’s before being cut loose ahead of the 2023 season, where he was claimed by the Blue Jays. 

Clement impressed so much in a 29-game cameo for Toronto that season that the team’s front office elected to keep him on the roster all season, which ended up helping the team in a way no one could have seen coming. 

After a solid 2024 season, Clement officially broke out this season, recording a .277/.313/.398 slashline with nine home runs, 50 RBI and 35 doubles while playing great defense all over the diamond. 

In fact, his defense was so good that he has a chance to make history. Earlier this week, MLB unveiled the nominees for this year’s Gold Glove Awards, where Clement was nominated at both third base and in the utility category. 

If Clement were to win both, he’d become the third player in MLB history to win a Gold Glove at multiple positions (joining Darin Erstad, DJ LeMahieu, and Plácido Polanco) along with becoming the first player to win two Gold Gloves in one season. 

Former Guardians Ernie Clement could make Gold Glove history 

While Clement played every infield position this year for the Blue Jays, most of his time was spent at third base (89 games). He led baseball in DRS (22) and was worth 14 Outs Above Average across every position he played at. 

Coming into the season, Clement looked like a question mark in Toronto's “win-now” lineup. Now he’s a productive major league hitter who sucks up everything hit to him on defense. 

He’ll be going against a Guardian in both races, as José Ramírez was nominated for the Gold Glove at third and Daniel Schneemann was nominated in the utility category. Ramírez was worth 7 Outs Above Average at third and led the American League with 235 assists while Schneemann was worth 8 Outs Above Average and played every position but first base and catcher. 

Even if Clement doesn’t win, he still had a fantastic season that has put him squarely in the middle of the Blue Jays’ future plans. He’s also in the midst of a fantastic postseason where he’s hit .452 with one home run and six RBI. 

While there are plenty of former Guardians who are still alive in the postseason, Clement has arguably been the most important to his club. Imagine telling someone that three years ago.