Orioles: Glove story

Sorry, but I was on my flight home yesterday when the announcement came down that Adam Jones had won his first Gold Glove -- and the first by an Orioles outfielder since Paul Blair won the last of his eight in 1975 -- so I'm a little late to this party. It was no surprise, of course, since Adam's brother spilled the beans on his MySpace page last week, but it has generated quite a bit of conversation about the selection process. Since I used to handle the balloting in Baltimore for The Sporting News (which distributed the ballots for Rawlings), I think I can give some decent insight into the situation. The process definitely is flawed, though that doesn't mean the vast majority of players aren't very deserving. I think Adam Jones is a terrific center fielder and will go on to win a lot more Gold Gloves, but he does benefit from a format that awards three Gold Gloves to outfielders in each league without respect to their specific outfield positions. That mean...