ARLINGTON, Texas — Ezequiel Durán won the 2026 Rawlings Gold Glove Award at the utility position in the American League on Sunday night after making starts at seven different positions for the Texas Rangers. He is the first Rangers player to win the award at utility. Rawlings announced the winners during a televised show on ESPN. The award is the first Gold Glove in Durán’s five Major League seasons.
Durán was one of three finalists, along with José Caballero of the New York Yankees and Zach McKinstry of the Detroit Tigers. Rawlings named the finalists on Oct. 14.
The utility award, first handed out in 2022, is decided differently from the other positions. Managers and coaches make up 75% of the vote everywhere else, with the sabermetrics community accounting for the other 25%, according to MLB.com. The utility winner comes from a defensive formula Rawlings built with the Society for American Baseball Research.
Texas had three other finalists. Jacob deGrom lost out at pitcher to Tanner Bibee of the Cleveland Guardians. Wyatt Langford lost out in left field to Cody Bellinger of the Yankees. Evan Carter lost out in center field to Ceddanne Rafaela of the Boston Red Sox. The Rangers won the Rawlings Gold Glove Team Award in 2025.
Ezequiel Durán Started At Seven Positions In 2026
Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reported that Durán started 49 games at shortstop, 41 at third base, 25 at second base, 14 in center field, 9 in left field, 7 in right field, and 1 at first base. Pitcher and catcher were the only spots he did not start.
He finished with a team-high 17 Outs Above Average. That total ranked in the 99th percentile, according to MLB.com. He was worth 11 Outs Above Average at shortstop, 3 at second base, and 2 at third base. FanGraphs credited him with 4.4 WAR.
At the plate, Durán hit .260/.320/.419 with 17 home runs, 83 RBIs, and 12 stolen bases in a career-high 153 games. The home run and RBI totals were also career highs. He added 27 doubles and 4 triples.
During the Rangers’ series in Phoenix in mid-September, with two weeks left in the regular season, Rangers manager Skip Schumaker had Durán down as probably the best baserunner on the team, David Venn of MLB.com reported. Texas was still chasing the Houston Astros for the AL West title and the third Wild Card spot at the time.
“No one plays shortstop like Zeke and also plays center field like Zeke … and can play third and second and everywhere else,” Schumaker said. “He’s defensively fantastic, but he has 17 home runs and [80] RBIs. He can also steal, and he’s probably our best baserunner. He’s been fun to watch, a pleasure to be around in the clubhouse. I’m really happy [with] the type of year he’s having.”
At that point, Durán led the Rangers with 4.7 Baseball-Reference WAR. Langford was next on the team, 1.8 behind him.
Schumaker credited Rangers hitting coach Alex Cintrón with much of Durán’s breakout at the plate. A year earlier, Durán hit .224/.266/.293 with no home runs in 90 games across three stints with Texas.
“He’s learning who he is as a player,” Schumaker explained. “He’s maturing as a hitter, and I think it’s the start of a really good career for Zeke.”
“I think something is wrong if he doesn’t win the Gold Glove,” Schumaker continued. “And I can’t imagine he doesn’t win a couple of awards, including the Silver Slugger. He’s had that kind of special year.”
Speaking during the same series in Arizona, Durán did not consider the daily switch from one position to another the difficult part. He had covered third base that month during Josh Jung’s absence and had played all three outfield spots at different points of the season.
“I’d say that for me, what I want is to be in the lineup, helping my team win,” Durán said. “I wouldn’t say it’s difficult, but [the key is] the focus and the training every day in the particular position that I have to play that day.”
Durán credited his faith first. Beyond that, he pointed to the focus, the work, and the adjustments he made hitting and on defense.
“It would be a gift from the Lord,” Durán explained. “Grateful to him if that comes, but the important thing is that we are playing hard and helping my team win.”
Durán Is An All-MLB Team Finalist Ahead Of The Tender Deadline
Durán is one of three Rangers finalists for the 2026 All-MLB Team, along with deGrom and closer Jacob Latz, Landry reported. The All-MLB First and Second Teams will be announced at the MLB Awards, which air on MLB Network from 8 to 10 p.m. CT on Nov. 11 from The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas.
Louisville Slugger will announce its Silver Slugger finalists Monday at 1 p.m. CT. Durán is also up for the MLB Players Alumni Association’s Heart & Hustle Award, with fan voting open on MLB.com.
Texas acquired Durán from the Yankees in a July 2021 trade, and he made his Major League debut with the Rangers in 2022. He was on the 2023 team that won the franchise’s first World Series.
Durán played the 2026 season on a one-year, $1.375 million contract. He is one of eight arbitration-eligible Rangers heading into the Nov. 20 tender deadline.
