Worst MLB Defensive Players of All Time
If you've ever loved baseball, at any level, you know the guy when you see him. He might be standing out there, sweating a little more than everyone else, not as locked in as you want, overthinking it. He's the guy you definitely don't want the ball hit to when your team is pitching.
Throughout major league history, some players have built their entire careers on hitting, despite some, ahem, major defensive deficiencies. Even a few Hall of Famers.
These are the worst glovemen of all time at every position.
Note: We used a combination of metrics such as Defensive Wins Above Replacement (dWAR), Total Zone Runs (an estimate of runs saved or given up in the field), errors and fielding percentage to produce this lineup.
Catcher: Ed Taubensee
Career: 1991-2001 (10 seasons)
Teams: Cleveland Indians (1991, 2001), Houston Astros (1992-94), Cincinnati Reds (1994-2000)
Stats: 5,411 chances, 5,003 putouts, 343 assists, 65 errors
Fielding percentage: .988
dWAR: -2.0
Total Zone Runs at position: -64
Caught stealing percentage: .233
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Ed Taubensee
In order to be a truly terrible defensive catcher and still stay on the roster, you have to be a heck of a hitter.
Ed Taubensee was an average hitter who was historically bad at defense for his entire career — he threw out only 23 percent of baserunners who tried to steal. He also was among the league leaders in passed balls and errors committed by a catcher on a regular basis.
Most notably, the Astros traded Kenny Lofton for Taubensee, straight up, after the 1991 season.
Honorable Mention Catcher: Michael Barrett
Career: 1998-2009 (11 seasons)
Teams: Montreal Expos (1998-2003), Chicago Cubs (2004-07), San Diego Padres (2007-08), Toronto Blue Jays (2009)
Stats: 6,741 chances, 6,115 putouts, 552 assists, 74 errors
Fielding percentage: .989
dWAR: -2.0
Total Zone Runs at position: -65
Caught stealing percentage: .218
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Michael Barrett
Michael Barrett's caught stealing percentage is pretty horrendous — only 22 percent thrown out over his entire career. He was pretty decent with his bat for most of his career, but his Total Zone Runs allowed of -65 is horrendous as well.
Barrett's career became known much more for his scraps: two fights with pitcher Roy Oswalt in 2004, a legendary brawl with White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski when Barrrett was with the Cubs and a fight with Cubs teammate Carlos Zambrano in their own dugout.
Honorable Mention Catcher: Mike Piazza
Career: 1992-2007 (15 seasons)
Teams: Los Angeles Dodgers (1992-98), Florida Marlins (1998), New York Mets (1998-2005), San Diego Padres (2006), Oakland Athletics (2007)
Stats: 12,247 chances, 11,347 putouts, 768 assists, 132 errors
Fielding percentage: .989
dWAR: 1.5
Total Zone Runs at position: -60
Caught stealing percentage: .232
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Mike Piazza
Mike Piazza isn't the only Hall of Famer on this list, and his defensive liabilities only make us wonder how he would've stood up among the all-time greatest players (not just catchers) had he been able to throw out more than 23 percent of baserunners.
Piazza could rake, and might be the greatest hitting catcher to ever play, defensive inequities be damned.
They did, however, cost him being a first-ballot Hall of Famer. He made it in on the fourth try.
Honorable Mention Catcher: Ryan Doumit
Career: 2005-14 (10 seasons)
Teams: Pittsburgh Pirates (2005–11), Minnesota Twins (2012–13), Atlanta Braves (2014)
Stats: 3,234 chances, 2,907 putouts, 285 assists, 42 errors
Fielding percentage: .987
dWAR: -1.9
Total Zone Runs at position: -24
Caught stealing percentage: .240
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Ryan Doumit
Ryan Doumit was a really bad catcher.
He ended up there because it lined up more with his offensive production than putting him at one of the corner outfield spots or at first base.
Doumit's struggles came with pitch framing, where he cost his team about -7.3 runs per 1,000 innings, and with trying to throw out baserunners, where he had a caught stealing rate of 24 percent.
Honorable Mention Catcher: Gary Sanchez
Career: 2015-present
Teams: New York Yankees
Stats: 2,961 chances, 2,763 putouts, 161 assists, 37 errors
Fielding percentage: .988
dWAR: +2.0
Total Zone Runs at position: -13
Caught stealing percentage: .330
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Gary Sanchez
In his first few seasons with the Yankees, Gary Sanchez was as bad at blocking pitches behind the plate as almost anyone in the modern history of baseball.
Sanchez, who relies on unbelievable power at the plate to change games, improved on blocking pitches in 2019. But he got worse at framing pitches and is costing his team more in that area.
His overall defense has suffered as well. Sanchez made 15 errors behind the plate in 2019.
First Base: Jason Giambi
Career: 1995-2014 (19 seasons)
Teams: Oakland Athletics (1995-2001), New York Yankees (2002-08), Oakland Athletics (2009), Colorado Rockies (2009-12), Cleveland Indians (2013-14)
Stats: 11,742 chances, 10,989 putouts, 649 assists, 104 errors
Fielding percentage: .991
dWAR: -19.7
Total Zone Runs at position: -39
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Jason Giambi
Jason Giambi was the 2000 American League Most Valuable Player while with the Oakland Athletics, then cashed in with a seven-year, $120 million contract with the Yankees in 2001.
No amount of money could make Giambi a good defensive player. His defensive WAR of -19.7 is stunningly bad, and one can't help but wonder if years of rampant steroid use and performance-enhancing drugs contributed to Giambi's lack of mobility.
Honorable Mention First Base: Frank Thomas
Career: 1990-2008 (18 seasons)
Teams: Chicago White Sox (1990-2005), Oakland Athletics (2006, 2008), Toronto Blue Jays (2007-08)
Stats: 8,487 chances, 7,910 putouts, 497 assists, 80 errors
Fielding percentage: .991
dWar: -22.5
Total Zone Runs at position: -65
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Frank Thomas
We hate to put Frank Thomas on this list. But the two-time American League Most Valuable Player was really bad in the field.
So why did the White Sox not force Thomas into a role as their everyday designated hitter earlier in his career? It was because Thomas, a former tight end at Auburn, said he didn't feel involved with the game and focused on hitting when he was DH.
The numbers bear this out, and his best seasons hitting were some of his worst seasons fielding.
Honorable Mention First Base: Dick Stuart
Career: 1958-66, 1969 (9 seasons)
Teams: Pittsburgh Pirates (1958-62), Boston Red Sox (1963-64), Philadelphia Phillies (1965), New York Mets (1966), Los Angeles Dodgers (1966), California Angels (1969)
Stats: 9,221 chances, 8,294 putouts, 758 assists, 169 errors
Fielding percentage: .982
dWAR: -12.8
Total Zone Runs at position: -59
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Dick Stuart
Dick Stuart's wonderful array of nicknames helps us understand his place as one of the worst defensive first basemen in MLB history, including "Dr. Strangeglove," "Stonefingers" and "The Man With the Iron Glove."
Stuart was in the on-deck circle when teammate Bill Mazeroski hit the game-winning home run for the Pirates in Game 7 of the 1960 World Series.
Stuart also had another great nickname — "Moby Dick" — when he finished the last few years of his career in Japan.
Honorable Mention First Base: Cap Anson
Career: 1871-97 (27 seasons)
Teams: Rockford Forest Citys (1871), Philadelphia Athletics (1872–75), Chicago White Stockings/Colts (1876–97)
Stats: 25,160 chances, 22,572 putouts, 1,612 assists, 976 errors
Fielding percentage: .961
dWAR: N/A
Total Zone Runs at position: N/A
Gold Glove Awards: N/A
Bottom Line: Cap Anson
Cap Anson played in the dead ball era, where errors were out of control, but there’s still no way to get around his 976 errors. He made 658 of those errors playing first base, which is the major league record for first basemen.
The avowed racist (he refused to take the field when Blacks were on the other roster) committed more than 50 or more errors in a single season four times, with a career-high 58 errors in 1884.
But Anson could hit (.334 lifetime batting average), and he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939.
Honorable Mention First Base: Pedro Guerrero
Career: 1978-92 (15 seasons)
Teams: Los Angeles Dodgers (1978–88), St. Louis Cardinals (1988–92)
Stats: 7,265 chances, 6,007 putouts, 1,093 assists, 165 errors
Fielding percentage: .977
dWAR: -12.5
Total Zone Runs at position: -33
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Pedro Guerrero
Pedro Guerrero might be one of the most underrated hitters of all time — a five-time All-Star and World Series Most Valuable Player with a .300 career batting average.
He's also the source of one of the greatest quotes on fielding in the history of baseball. Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda tried to get into Guerrero's head to uncover his fielding struggles and asked what he was thinking playing third base in the ninth inning of a tie game.
"Please, God, don't hit it to me," said Guerrero, who also played some outfield in his career in addition to first and third. Lasorda asked what else he was thinking. "Please, God, don't hit it to (second baseman) Steve Sax."
Guerrero's 165 career errors make a lot more sense now.
Second Base: Juan Samuel
Career: 1983-98 (15 seasons)
Teams: Philadelphia Phillies (1983-89), New York Mets (1989), Los Angeles Dodgers (1990-92), Kansas City Royals (1992, 1995), Cincinnati Reds (1993), Detroit Tigers (1994-95), Toronto Blue Jays (1996-98)
Stats: 7,048 chances, 3,572 putouts, 3,288 assists, 188 errors
Fielding percentage: .973
dWAR: -8.9
Total Zone Runs at position: -89
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Juan Samuel
Juan Samuel was one of the most aggressive hitters in baseball history — the end result was 1,578 hits and 396 stolen bases.
He also was one of the worst fielders ever to be jammed onto a lineup card. He played 15 seasons for seven different teams that tried to make him an everyday player at six different positions.
Nowhere was his awful defense more pronounced than when he played second base, where he started over 1,000 games, and his total zone runs allowed went to -89.
Honorable Mention Second Base: Alfonso Soriano
Career: 1999-2014 (15 seasons)
Teams: New York Yankees (1999-2003, 2013-2014), Texas Rangers (2004-05), Washington Nationals (2006), Chicago Cubs (2007-13)
Stats: 5,823 chances, 3,456 putouts, 2,198 assists, 169 errors
Fielding percentage: .971
dWAR: -10.1
Total Zone Runs at position: -75
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Alfonso Soriano
It would be interesting to see how many of New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter's Total Zone Runs allowed occurred while playing next to Alfonso Soriano, a terrible defensive second baseman for the ages.
The Cubs moved Soriano to the outfield after he signed an eight-year, $136 million contract, but that did little to curb his defensive struggles.
And his TZR allowed were among some of the highest in his career after the move, although he did finish his career with 412 home runs.
Honorable Mention Second Base: Steve Sax
Career: 1981-94 (13 seasons)
Teams: Los Angeles Dodgers (1981-88), New York Yankees (1989-91), Chicago White Sox (1992-93), Oakland Athletics (1994)
Stats: 8,624 chances, 3,617 putouts, 4,817 assists, 190 errors
Fielding percentage: .978
dWAR: -0.9
Total Zone Runs at position: -59
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Steve Sax
You know your defensive struggles are pretty epic when they get their own name.
Such was the case with the "Steve Sax Syndrome" after the Los Angeles Dodgers' second baseman inexplicably couldn't throw to first base properly from 1983 to 1988.
Teammate Pedro Guerrero was an emergency third baseman who famously summed up Sax's struggles when he said, "My main thought was 'I hope they don't hit it to me.' My next thought was ... 'I hope they don't hit it to Sax.'"
Honorable Mention Second Base: Duane Kuiper
Career: 1974-85 (10 seasons)
Teams: Cleveland Indians (1974–81), San Francisco Giants (1982–85)
Stats: 4,542 chances, 2,000 putouts, 2,466 assists, 76 errors
Fielding percentage: .983
dWAR: +0.3
Total Zone Runs at position: -29
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Duane Kuiper
How did Duane Kuiper play 10 seasons in the majors? There might not be a good answer to this.
Aside from his horrible play on the basepaths, where he stole just 52 bases in 123 attempts, or at the plate, where he hit just one home run in 3,754 at-bats, Kuiper was also bad in the field. He committed 76 errors over his career and had a career average of -29 total zone runs allowed.
What's worse? He had to do most of that playing for the Cleveland Indians.
Honorable Mention Second Base: Chuck Knoblauch
Career: 1995-2014 (19 seasons)
Teams: Minnesota Twins (1991–97), New York Yankees (1998–2001), Kansas City Royals (2002)
Stats: 6,821 chances, 2,852 putouts, 3,844 assists, 125 errors
Fielding percentage: .982
dWAR: +6.0
Total Zone Runs at position: +3.0
Gold Glove Awards: 1 (1997)
Bottom Line: Chuck Knoblauch
Chuck Knoblauch had a pretty amazing career on paper. He won four World Series titles, was a four-time All-Star, American League Rookie of the Year and even won a Gold Glove award in 1997.
Knoblauch makes the list for throwing problems that dogged his career starting in 1998, where he inexplicably came down with one of the more famous cases of the "yips" or "Steve Sax Syndrome" in baseball history.
Simply put, Knoblauch could no longer throw successfully to first base. His errors doubled to 26 in 1999, and in 2000, his continued struggles ultimately forced his move to left field.
Third Base: Edwin Encarnacion
Career: 2005-present (16 seasons)
Teams: Cincinnati Reds (2005-09), Toronto Blue Jays (2009-16), Cleveland Indians (2017-18), Seattle Mariners (2019), New York Yankees (2019), Chicago White Sox (2020)
Stats: 5,914 chances, 4,415 putouts, 1,355 assists, 144 errors
Fielding percentage: .976
dWar: -14.5
Total Zone Runs at position: -52
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Edwin Encarnacion
If you've ever had the pleasure of watching Edwin Encarnacion play, you know the three-time All-Star will make you hold your breath when he's in the field. And not in a good way.
His defensive WAR is one of the highest you'll find in this lineup. What's impressive is that he's actually gotten better on defense over his career, and his real struggles in the field were mostly over his first six seasons.
Honorable Mention Third Base: Bill Madlock
Career: 1973-87 (14 seasons)
Teams: Texas Rangers (1973), Chicago Cubs (1974-76), San Francisco Giants (1977-79), Pittsburgh Pirates (1979-85), Los Angeles Dodgers (1985-87), Detroit Tigers (1987)
Stats: 4,941 chances, 1,694 putouts, 3,025 assists, 222 errors
Fielding percentage: .955
dWAR: -8.7
Total Zone Runs at position: -89
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Bill Madlock
The really strange thing about Bill Madlock's career is teams didn't try to fit him into an easier position to play, like right field.
His total zone runs allowed of -89 and his defensive wins above replacement of -8.7 are some of the worst in history at third base. On the flip side, Madlock won four National League batting titles and was a three-time All-Star.
His fielding percentage, which seems normal, is deceiving because he had such little range.
Honorable Mention Third Base: Butch Hobson
Career: 1975-82 (7 seasons)
Teams: Boston Red Sox (1975-80), California Angels (1981), New York Yankees (1982)
Stats: 1,918 chances, 595 putouts, 1,183 assists, 140 errors
Fielding percentage: .927
dWAR: -4.3
Total Zone Runs at position: -52
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Butch Hobson
Butch Hobson was a former quarterback for the University of Alabama and legendary coach Bear Bryant, but Hobson had some legendary struggles fielding a baseball.
Hobson's 1978 season was a legendary blunder. The 43 errors he committed that season for the Red Sox were the most since 1949 and hasn't been matched since, and his fielding percentage of .866 is the lowest in the modern era of baseball.
Hobson went on to manage the Red Sox from 1992 to 1994.
Honorable Mention Third Base: Wayne Gross
Career: 1976-86 (12 seasons)
Teams: Oakland Athletics (1976–83), Baltimore Orioles (1984–85), Oakland Athletics (1986)
Stats: 3,182 chances, 1,549 putouts, 1,490 assists, 143 errors
Fielding percentage: .955
dWAR: -0.8
Total Zone Runs at position: -19
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Wayne Gross
Wayne Gross finished his career with -19 total zone runs allowed for his time at third base, where he went over 20 errors in three of his first four seasons with the Oakland Athletics.
Gross never quite matched those numbers again throughout his career, but he did crack double-digit errors in four more seasons before his career was over.
Gross was so bad in his time with the A's that he was named to the Athletics' All-Time All-Iron Glove team in ESPN writer Rob Neyer's "Big Book of Baseball LIneups" in 2003.
Honorable Mention Third Base: Doug Flynn
Career: 1975-85 (11 seasons)
Teams: Cincinnati Reds (1975–77), New York Mets (1977–81), Texas Rangers (1982), Montreal Expos (1982–85), Detroit Tigers (1985)
Stats: 3,593 chances, 1,000 putouts, 2,483 assists, 110 errors
Fielding percentage: .986
dWAR: +3.6
Total Zone Runs at position: -4
Gold Glove Awards: 1 (1980)
Bottom Line: Doug Flynn
There are a lot of times the Gold Glove has been handed out over the years, and we look back in confusion.
Doug Flynn's 1980 Gold Glove is one of those times. Flynn won two World Series titles as a backup infielder on the Cincinnati Reds in 1975 and 1976, his first two seasons in the majors, and spent the rest of his career living off that.
Flynn makes the list not for being stunningly bad but for being stunningly below average at three different infield positions — shortstop, second base and third base.
Shortstop: Jose Offerman
Career: 1990-2002, 2004-05 (15 seasons)
Teams: Los Angeles Dodgers (1990-95), Kansas City Royals (1996-98), Boston Red Sox (1999-2002), Seattle Mariners (2002), Minnesota Twins (2004), Philadelphia Phillies (2005), New York Mets (2005)
Stats: 7,467 chances, 3,897 putouts, 3,340 assists, 230 errors
Fielding percentage: .969
dWAR: -3.2
Total Zone Runs at position: -69
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Jose Offerman
Jose Offerman secured his place on this list with an atrocious run through the early 1990s, when he led the National League in errors three times in four years from 1992 to 1995.
Offerman's defense was so bad the Dodgers traded him to the Royals after his first All-Star season, in 1995. Eventually, he was moved to second base, and the results weren't much better.
Now, he's known for two off-field incidents, including one where he rushed a pitcher with a bat in independent league baseball and was ordered to pay an almost $1 million settlement.
Honorable Mention Shortstop: Derek Jeter
Career: 1995-2014 (20 seasons)
Teams: New York Yankees
Stats: 10,679 chances, 3,820 putouts, 6,605 assists, 254 errors
Fielding percentage: .976
dWAR: -9.4
Total Zone Runs at position: -186
Gold Glove Awards: 5 (2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010)
Bottom Line: Derek Jeter
It's tough to separate Derek Jeter from his place as one of the worst defensive shortstops of all time — statistically — because he won five Gold Gloves and his hustle play in the 2001 ALCS against the A's is one of the greatest defensive plays of all time.
But the numbers don't lie. Jeter has the worst Total Zone Runs allowed of any MLB player, ever, with a staggering -186 runs allowed.
The tradeoff? He was a five-time World Series champion.
Honorable Mention Shortstop: Johnnie LeMaster
Career: 1975-85, 1987 (12 seasons)
Teams: San Francisco Giants (1975-85), Cleveland Indians (1985), Pittsburgh Pirates (1985), Oakland Athletics (1987)
Stats: 4,535 chances, 1,545 putouts, 2,811 assists, 179 errors
Fielding percentage: .961
dWAR: -0.2
Total Zone Runs at position: -62
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Johnnie LeMaster
Johnnie LeMaster seemed to sum up Giants fans' feelings toward him — and his fielding — when he took the field at Candlestick Park during a July game in 1979 with "BOO" on the back of his jersey instead of his name.
Their frustration was understandable since 1979 was the first year in LeMaster's career that he had at least 20 errors and started a stretch where he had at least 20 errors in six of the next seven seasons.
Honorable Mention Shortstop: Rob Picciolo
Career: 1977-85 (9 seasons)
Teams: Oakland Athletics (1977–82, 1985), Milwaukee Brewers (1982–83), California Angels (1984)
Stats: 2,440 chances, 952 putouts, 1,417 assists, 71 errors
Fielding percentage: .971
dWAR: +1.8
Total Zone Runs at position: -12
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Rob Picciolo
Rob Picciolo wasn't a terrible fielding shortstop overall. He was just really bad whenever he got a chance to be an everyday player.
The A's tried to make Picciolo the man at shortstop for his first two seasons, and he coughed up balls at an alarming rate, with 21 errors in 1977, his first season, and 17 errors in 1979, his second season, as a full-time shortstop.
Picciolo, who was the Angels' bench coach for four seasons, died in 2018 at 64 years old.
Honorable Mention Shortstop: Jorge Polanco
Career: 2014-present (6 seasons)
Teams: Minnesota Twins
Stats: 1,549 chances, 452 putouts, 1,027 assists, 70 errors
Fielding percentage: .955
dWAR: -0.7
Total Zone Runs at position: -30
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Jorge Polanco
It's never good to make a list like this early in your career, but Jorge Polanco has done just enough in six seasons to make the cut.
Polanco was the American League starter at shortstop in the 2019 All-Star Game — just one year after a lengthy suspension for performance-enhancing drugs — and his fielding statistics should be alarming for Twins fans.
Polanco has been couching up errors at a high rate since becoming the team's full-time shortstop in 2017, and he's cracked double digits in each of those seasons, including a career-high 22 errors in 2019.
Left Field: Adam Dunn
Career: 2001-14 (14 seasons)
Teams: Cincinnati Reds (2001-08), Arizona Diamondbacks (2008), Washington Nationals (2009-10), Chicago White Sox (2011-14), Oakland Athletics (2014)
Stats: 6,453 chances, 6,002 putouts, 331 assists, 120 errors
Fielding percentage: .981
dWAR: -28.4
Total Zone Runs at position: -83
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Adam Dunn
In all fairness, Adam Dunn could've made this list at several different positions, we just picked left field because that's where he had the most starts. He also was terrible at first base and in right field. Look at the defensive wins against replacement. Look at the total zone runs allowed.
It wasn't until Dunn made the move to the American League with the Chicago White Sox in 2011 that a team was truly able to take the glove off his hand and just let him be the designated hitter he was always meant to be and mercifully let all of us stop watching the horrors he inflicted on this great game trying to make even the most basic of plays in the field.
Honorable Mention Left Field: Manny Ramirez
Career: 1993-2011 (19 seasons)
Teams: Cleveland Indians (1993-2000), Boston Red Sox (2001-08), Los Angeles Dodgers (2008-10), Chicago White Sox (2010), Tampa Bay Rays (2011)
Stats: 3,410 chances, 3,206 putouts, 129 assists, 75 errors
Fielding percentage: .978
dWar: -21.7
Total Zone Runs at position: -69
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Manny Ramirez
Part of Manny Ramirez's appeal was — somehow — his struggles in the field.
We all have at least one great "Oh, Manny!" story about something funny we saw him do as he stumbled and bumbled his way through major league outfields.
But here's the thing you need to remember: .312 lifetime batting average, 555 home runs, 2,574 hits and 1,831 RBI. What else do you need to know?
Honorable Mention Left Field: Greg Luzinski
Career: 1970-84 (15 seasons)
Teams: Philadelphia Phillies (1970-80), Chicago White Sox (1981-84)
Stats: 2,282 chances, 2,120 putouts, 105 assists, 57 errors
Fielding percentage: .975
dWar: -20.4
Total Zone Runs at position: -93
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Greg Luzinski
We should all know Greg Luzinski's name — an elite power hitter who played 15 seasons in the majors and had over 300 career home runs. But we don't. That's because the 6-foot-1, 255-pound left fielder's struggles in the field overshadowed his work at the plate.
Luzinski's misplay of a line drive to left field in the 1977 National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers triggered what Phillies' fans call "Black Friday."
And Luzinski's eventual trade to the White Sox.
Honorable Mention Left Field: Ben Grieve
Career: 1997-2005 (9 seasons)
Teams: Oakland Athletics (1997–2000), Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2001–03), Milwaukee Brewers (2004), Chicago Cubs (2004–05)
Stats: 1,436 chances, 1,385 putouts, 311 assists, 20 errors
Fielding percentage: .986
dWAR: -11.0
Total Zone Runs at position: -24
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Ben Grieve
Ben Grieve won American League Rookie of the Year in 1998 and had three solid seasons to start out his career, but his numbers at the plate dropped off the map after that.
While his fielding improved over the course of his career, you can point directly to his early struggles in the outfield as one of the reasons the Oakland A's traded him after three seasons and an average of approximately -20 total zone runs allowed in that span.
Grieve's -76 total zone runs allowed for his career is truly horrendous.
Honorable Mention Left Field: Al Martin
Career: 1992-2003 (11 seasons)
Teams: Pittsburgh Pirates (1992-99), San Diego Padres (2000), Seattle Mariners (2000-01), Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2003)
Stats: 1,810 chances, 1,700 putouts, 54 assists, 56 errors
Fielding percentage: .969
dWAR: -9.3
Total Zone Runs at position: -39
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Al Martin
Al Martin carved out 11 seasons in the majors by being pretty decent with his bat — he had a career .276 batting average.
His longevity definitely wasn't tied to his ability to field the ball. Martin had a horrendous -52 total zone runs allowed for his career, with a -39 mark in left field, where he started almost 843 games.
Martin, who was once investigated for bigamy in Nevada because he was married to two women at once, also had more errors (58) than assists (56) for his career. Which is bad.
Center Field: Bernie Williams
Career: 1991-2006 (16 seasons)
Teams: New York Yankees
Stats: 4,823 chances, 4,710 putouts, 65 assists, 48 errors
Fielding percentage: .990
dWar: -9.5
Total Zone Runs at position: -105
Gold Glove Awards: 4 (1997, 1998, 1999, 2000)
Bottom Line: Bernie Williams
Since outfields are historically set up with center field as the best defensive player of the three positions, there aren't a lot of "bad" center fielders to pick from.
But watching Bernie Williams play center field for the Yankees for almost two decades was a study in perseverance. The four Golden Gloves he won were a joke — his total zone runs allowed were in double digits for two of those seasons.
Things got really bad in the later years of his career, with -22 total zone runs allowed in 2004.
Honorable Mention Center Field: Nate McLouth
Career: 2005-14 (10 seasons)
Teams: Pittsburgh Pirates (2005-09, 2012), Atlanta Braves (2009-11), Baltimore Orioles (2012-13), Washington Nationals (2014)
Stats: 1,820 chances, 1,780 putouts, 23 assists, 17 errors
Fielding percentage: .991
dWar: -6.2
Total Zone Runs at position: -30
Gold Glove Awards: 1 (2008)
Bottom Line: Nate McLouth
It's sort of unbelievable that Nate McLouth won a Gold Glove in 2008, because it wasn't even close to his best season as a center fielder. It wasn't his worst, either.
McLouth was pretty much below average playing in the outfield his entire career. He came up just 11 starts shy of getting 100 career starts at all three spots.
Only 17 errors for his career is pretty respectable, but only 23 assists is the opposite.
Honorable Mention Center Field: Pete Browning
Career: 1882-94 (13 seasons)
Teams: Louisville Eclipse/Colonels (1882-89, 1892-93), Cleveland Infants (1890), Pittsburgh Pirates (1891), Cincinnati Reds (1891-1892), St. Louis Browns (1894), Brooklyn Grooms (1894)
Stats: 3,439 chances, 2,490 putouts, 535 assists, 414 errors
Fielding percentage: .880
dWar: -5.8
Total Zone Runs at position: NA
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Pete Browning
Pete Browning had a pretty amazing nickname, "Gladiator," and he was also the inspiration for the Louisville Slugger line of baseball bats.
While early pro baseball was plagued by errors (just look at the career lists for MLB), Browning's 414 errors in 13 seasons still stand out. It's not hard to see why he made all those mistakes. Browning was a raging alcoholic who regularly played games drunk.
In fact, he was suspended for the last two months of the 1889 season for his drinking.
Honorable Mention Center Field: Terrence Long
Career: 1999-2006 (8 seasons)
Teams: New York Mets (1999), Oakland Athletics (2000-03), San Diego Padres ( 2004), Kansas City Royals (2005), New York Yankees (2006)
Stats: 1,711 chances, 1,646 putouts, 30 assists, 35 errors
Fielding percentage: .980
dWAR: -1.9
Total Zone Runs at position: -18
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Terrence Long
One of the more fascinating parts of Michael Lewis' seminal book on baseball, "MoneyBall", is the breakdown of what Terrence Long cost the Oakland Athletics by putting him in center field instead of Johnny Damon and if it was worth the risk of having him out there.
The A's managed to figure Long into the equation by moving him to left field, and it ended up being more about the naked eye than sabermetrics. Damon was able to read fly balls easily off the bat while Long, for the entirety of his career, would freeze or move in the wrong direction.
It's one reason why Long had a .978 career fielding percentage playing center field with 21 errors.
Honorable Mention Center Field: Wil Myers
Career: 2013-present (7 seasons)
Teams: Tampa Bay Rays (2013-14), San Diego Padres (2015-present)
Stats: 3,728 chances, 3,474 putouts, 228 assists, 26 errors
Fielding percentage: .993
dWAR: -4.2
Total Zone Runs at position: -9
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Wil Myers
Wil Myers won American League Rookie of the Year in 2013 with the Tampa Bay Rays, then was traded to the San Diego Padres after the 2014 season.
He made his lone All-Star appearance in 2016 and parlayed that into a six-year, $83 million extension in 2017. Which kind of overshadows the fact that he's been shoehorned into all three outfield spots, first base and third base throughout his career trying to find the right fit to mask his shortcomings fielding the ball.
And teams have done a really good job at that. His defensive WAR and total zone runs allowed are bad, but not as bad as they probably should be.
Right Field: Bobby Bonilla
Career: 1986-2001 (16 seasons)
Teams: Chicago White Sox (1986), Pittsburgh Pirates (1986-91), New York Mets (1992-95, 1999), Baltimore Orioles (1995-96), Florida Marlins (1997-98), Los Angeles Dodgers (1998), Atlanta Braves (2000), St. Louis Cardinals (2001)
Stats: 5,144 chances, 3.045 putouts, 1,869 assists, 330 errors
Fielding percentage: .955
dWar: -15.6
Total Zone Runs at position: -46
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Bobby Bonilla
Let's get "Bobby Bonilla Day" out of the way at the jump. Props to the six-time All-Star for receiving $1.19 million every July 1 from the New York Mets from 2009 to 2035 as part of a bizarre contract.
And on that note, he wasn't getting paid for his glovework. Bonilla could've been on this list as a third baseman, but that almost seemed too easy.
He was bad wherever teams tried to put him, and that's most evident when you look at his eye-popping 330 career errors.
Honorable Mention Right Field: Brad Hawpe
Career: 2004-11, 2013 (10 seasons)
Teams: Colorado Rockies (2004-10), Tampa Bay Rays (2010). San Diego Padres (2011), Los Angeles Angels (2013)
Stats: 1,816 chances, 1,695 putouts, 87 assists, 34 errors
Fielding percentage: .981
dWar: -10.2
Total Zone Runs at position: -77
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Brad Hawpe
Had it not been for two truly awful seasons in 2008 and 2009, Brad Hawpe probably would've been able to avoid this lineup. But they happened. So let's take a look at his undoing.
His total zone runs allowed over those two years was a staggering -68, including 14 errors and a .956 fielding percentage in 2008. Hawpe managed to survive getting the axe over this stretch by posting his best seasons at the plate.
He batted .284, hit 49 home runs and racked up 281 hits over that same stretch, including his lone All-Star selection in 2009.
Honorable Mention Right Field: Jose Canseco
Career: 1985-2001 (17 seasons)
Teams: Oakland Athletics (1985-92), Texas Rangers (1992-94), Boston Red Sox (1995-96), Oakland Athletics (1997), Toronto Blue Jays (1998), Tampa Bay Devil Rays (1999-2000), New York Yankees (2000), Chicago White Sox (2001)
Stats: 2,128 chances, 2,003 putouts, 63 assists, 62 errors
Fielding percentage: .971
dWar: -13.8
Total Zone Runs at position: -30
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Jose Canseco
One of the more infamous players in baseball history, Jose Canseco had fielding woes that went way beyond when he misplayed a foul ball in 1993 that bounced off his head for a home run.
Just like Jason Giambi, the question needs to be asked if Canseco's admitted, consistent steroid use throughout his career contributed to his fielding woes, with the added bulk hurting his range.
Unlike a lot of bad defensive players, Canseco didn't force the issue and wasn't used as an everyday outfielder after 1991, spending the last decade of his career as a designated hitter.
Honorable Mention Right Field: Matt Stairs
Career: 1992-93, 1995-2011 (19 seasons)
Teams: Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals (1992–93, 2011), Boston Red Sox (1995), Oakland Athletics (1996–2000), Chicago Cubs (2001), Milwaukee Brewers (2002), Pittsburgh Pirates (2003), Kansas City Royals (2004–06), Texas Rangers (2006), Detroit Tigers (2006), Toronto Blue Jays (2007–08), Philadelphia Phillies (2008–09), San Diego Padres (2010)
Stats: 3,414 chances, 3,159 putouts, 215 assists, 40 errors
Fielding percentage: .988
dWAR: -17.0
Total Zone Runs at position: -67
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Matt Stairs
We want to give Matt Stairs all the props we can before we run him down, because he owns some pretty amazing major league records.
First, Stairs hit more pinch-hit home runs (23) than any player in MLB history. That leads us to his next record. He played for 13 teams (12 franchises), more than any position player in MLB history, even winning a World Series with the Phillies in 2008.
Now imagine if Stairs would've been able to field? His defensive WAR (-17.0) and total zone runs allowed (-67) are among the worst in MLB history.
Honorable Mention Right Field: Glenallen Hill
Career: 1989-2001 (13 seasons)
Teams: Toronto Blue Jays (1989–91), Cleveland Indians (1991–93), Chicago Cubs (1993–94, 1998-2000), San Francisco Giants (1995–97), Seattle Mariners (1998), New York Yankees (2000), Anaheim Angels (2001)
Stats: 1,586 chances, 1,488 putouts, 41 assists, 57 errors
Fielding percentage: .964
dWAR: -7.8
Total Zone Runs at position: -23
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Glenallen Hill
Glenallen Hill's defensive struggles were infamous.
Hill's play in the field inspired jokes among his teammates and coaches, including being compared to a fish trying to survive on dry land. And his career fielding percentage of .964 is atrocious.
What's worse about Hill's defensive stats is he was shoved into the designated hitter role whenever teams had an opportunity to use him there to limit his defensive chances.
Utility Man: Gary Sheffield
Career: 1988-2009 (22 seasons)
Teams: Milwaukee Brewers (1988-91), San Diego Padres (1992-93), Florida Marlins (1993-98), Los Angeles Dodgers (1998-2001), Atlanta Braves (2002-03), New York Yankees (2004-06), Detroit Tigers (2007-08), New York Mets (2009)
Stats: 4,686 chances, 3,275 putouts, 1,240 assists, 171 errors
Fielding percentage: .964
dWar: -27.7
Total Zone Runs at position: -180
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Gary Sheffield
Gary Sheffield very well could be the most underrated hitter of all time. But also consider that he's one of the worst defensive players of all time. So the two kind of balance each other out.
Sheffield couldn't seem to get right wherever teams put him in the field. He started over 300 games at three different positions and came up just six starts short of 100 at shortstop.
His -180 total zone runs allowed is second only to Derek Jeter in MLB history.
Honorable Mention Utility Man: Frank Howard
Career: 1958-73 (16 seasons)
Teams: Los Angeles Dodgers (1958-64), Washington Senators/Texas Rangers (1965-72), Detroit Tigers (1972-73)
Stats: 4,793 chances, 4,412 putouts, 277 assists, 104 errors
Fielding percentage: .978
dWar: -24.0
Total Zone Runs at position: -110
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Frank Howard
Frank Howard could've had a lengthy career as an NBA power forward. He was an All-American forward at Ohio State selected by the Philadelphia Warriors in the fifth round of the 1958 NBA draft.
But Howard also could launch a baseball off a bat, leading the American League in home runs twice. But defense on the diamond wasn't Howard's strong suit.
His mobility declined rapidly, and he was in the negative for defensive wins above replacement for 14 straight seasons, bouncing between left field, right field and first base.
Honorable Mention Utility Man: Dave Kingman
Career: 1971-86 (16 seasons)
Teams: San Francisco Giants (1971-74), New York Mets (1975-77, 1981-83), San Diego Padres (1977), California Angels (1977), New York Yankees (1977), Chicago Cubs (1978-80), Oakland Athletics (1984-86)
Stats: 6,702 chances, 5,835 putouts, 693 assists, 174 errors
Fielding percentage: .974
dWar: -16.7
Total Zone Runs at position: -58
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Dave Kingman
Dave Kingman was bad at three different positions, posting double-digit error seasons at third base, first base and left field, and he was average at the other position he played, right field.
It speaks more to the talented teammates he had around him that his total zone runs allowed isn't higher, but his -16.7 defensive wins above replacement seem to tell the real story.
Truly one of the more despicable people to ever play the game, Kingman could do one thing well — hit for power. His career batting average of .236 is barely above the Mendoza Line.
Honorable Mention Utility: Curt Blefary
Career: 1965-1972 (8 seasons)
Teams: Baltimore Orioles (1965–68), Houston Astros (1969), New York Yankees (1970–71), Oakland Athletics (1971–72), San Diego Padres (1972)
Stats: 3,461 chances, 3,142 putouts, 261 assists, 58 errors
Fielding percentage: .983
dWAR: -6.9
Total Zone Runs at position: -19
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Curt Blefary
Curt Blefary was bad at fielding.
The 1965 American League Rookie of the Year and 1966 World Series champion with the Baltimore Orioles earned the nickname "Clank" from teammate Frank Robinson for his struggles fielding the ball.
Because of his potent hitting abilities, teams shuffled him from position to position, but he was bad at all of them. He tried first base, third base, outfield and even catcher.
Blefary's -6.9 defensive WAR is a pretty telling stat.
Honorable Mention Utility: Dan Meyer
Career: 1974-85 (12 seasons)
Teams: Detroit Tigers (1974–76), Seattle Mariners (1977–81), Oakland Athletics (1982–85)
Stats: 5,259 chances, 4,562 putouts, 608 assists, 89 errors
Fielding percentage: .983
dWAR: -10.0
Total Zone Runs at position: -57
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Dan Meyer
Dan Meyer's name has been thrown about as being one of the most overrated — and worst— baseball players of all time. Which isn't totally fair because he was a decent hitter most of the time and had a .253 batting average.
Where Meyer was truly terrible was in the field. Teams tried to play Meyer for extended periods of time at left field, first base and third base, where he accumulated a whopping -57 total zone runs allowed for his career.
What's strange is the lowest of his per position totals was at third base, where it was -12.
Pitcher: Nolan Ryan
Career: 1966, 1968-93 (27 seasons)
Teams: New York Mets (1966, 1968-71), California Angels (1972-79), Houston Astros (1980-88), Texas Rangers (1989-93)
Stats: 857 chances, 220 putouts, 547 assists, 90 errors
Fielding percentage: .895
dWar: 0.2
Caught stealing percentage: .249
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Nolan Ryan
There are two easy ways to explain Nolan Ryan's low number of chances over 27 seasons in the majors — he's the MLB career leader in both walks and strikeouts. Maybe that's why the Hall of Famer was so poor at fielding the ball. He didn't get much practice.
But when the ball did come his way it was hold-your-breath time. His career fielding percentage of .895 is comically low, but for most of his career, he was probably just surprised anyone was able to actually connect with one of his pitches.
Honorable Mention Pitcher: Warren Spahn
Career: 1942, 1946-65 (21 seasons)
Teams: Boston/Milwaukee Braves (1942, 1946-64), New York Mets (1965), San Francisco Giants (1965)
Stats: 1,279 chances, 222 putouts, 999 assists, 58 errors
Fielding percentage: .955
dWar: -0.1
Caught stealing percentage: .460
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Warren Spahn
Hall of Famer Warren Spahn is tied with another player on our list, Hippo Vaughn, as the only two pitchers to have led the league in errors five different seasons.
Spahn still holds the MLB career record for wins for a left-handed pitcher with 363, was a 17-time All-Star and led the National League in wins eight times.
Spahn's defensive struggles seemed to be mostly early in his career, with a few blips as it went on.
Honorable Mention Pitcher: Hippo Vaughn
Career: 1908, 1910-21 (13 seasons)
Teams: New York Highlanders (1908, 1910-12), Washington Senators (1912), Chicago Cubs (1913-21)
Stats: 906 chances, 92 putouts, 740 assists, 74 errors
Fielding percentage: .918
dWar: -0.1
Total Zone Runs at position: NA
Caught stealing percentage: .519 (incomplete)
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Hippo Vaughn
Hippo Vaughn only played 13 seasons but led the National League in errors five times.
Vaughn posted below-.900 fielding percentages in four seasons, highlighted by a career-low .869 in 2014, when he committed a career-high 13 errors.
Vaughn's best year was in 1918, when he won the Triple Crown, which was also coincidentally the year he posted a career-high .967 fielding percentage.
Related: Best MLB Defensive Players
Honorable Mention Pitcher: Buddy Groom
Career: 1992-2005 (13 seasons)
Teams: Detroit Tigers (1992–95), Florida Marlins (1995), Oakland Athletics (1996–99), Baltimore Orioles (2000–04), New York Yankees (2005), Arizona Diamondbacks (2005)
Stats: 117 chances, 25 putouts, 85 assists, 5 errors
Fielding percentage: .940
dWar: 0.0
Caught stealing percentage: .320
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Buddy Groom
Let's first give Buddy Groom credit for being really, really determined. He didn't make his major league debut until he was 26 years old and ended up pitching in the majors until he was 40 years old.
Groom was a pretty solid left-handed pitcher who carved out a career in middle relief. You just had to hope and pray that the other team didn't hit the ball back to him.
Groom's fielding percentage hovered around or below .900 for most of his career and finished at an atrocious .940 in 13 seasons.
Honorable Mention Pitcher: Jose Lima
Career: 1994-2006 (13 seasons)
Teams: Detroit Tigers (1994–96, 2001-02), Houston Astros (1997–2001), Kansas City Royals (2003, 2005), Los Angeles Dodgers (2004), New York Mets (2006)
Stats: 302 chances, 114 putouts, 179 assists, 9 errors
Fielding percentage: .970
dWar: 0.0
Caught stealing percentage: .250
Gold Glove Awards: None
Bottom Line: Jose Lima
Jose Lima was one of the more entertaining players in the major leagues throughout the 1990s and early 2000s.
Known as much for his flamboyant style on the mound and his singing (he was into merengue), Lima also was an awful fielder. His fielding got worse as his career progressed, and his caught stealing percentage was usually about 10 points below the league average.
Lima died in 2010 of a massive heart attack. He was just 37 years old.