Geraldo Perdomo making Gold Glove case for Diamondbacks’ revamped defense

PHOENIX — Arizona Diamondbacks shortstop Geraldo Perdomo attacked a high chopper over the mound during a key part of the game on Sunday at Dodger Stadium, fielded the ball with his bare hand and fired a strike to first base as his feet left the ground.

As he hit the deck, his throw beat Los Angeles Dodgers hitter Mookie Betts to prevent the lead-off man from reaching base in the sixth inning of a one-run game. Reliever Ryan Thompson gave him a chest bump.

Arizona made several defensive highlights in Sunday’s 5-3 win, which juxtaposed a sloppy performance from the Dodgers that may have cost them a win.

Glove optional 😎 pic.twitter.com/n35SJOjaLa

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) July 12, 2026

Perdomo enjoyed a dream-like 2025 season at the plate with 20 home runs and 100 RBIs, numbers that he never came close to reaching since he became a semi-regular starter in 2022. But when Game 162 concluded, he was not totally satisfied.

Perdomo walked away from last season feeling like he should have played better defense for a team that went through lackluster stretches picking up the baseball, using manager Torey Lovullo’s vocabulary.

That became a primary focus of Perdomo’s over the offseason and spring training, and he has responded with one of the strongest defensive seasons in the league this year.

The metrics are backing him up as a midseason Gold Glove candidate.

Perdomo entered Sunday second to Betts, ironically, for the National League lead in defensive runs saved among shortstops with seven. DRS takes errors, range, arm and other factors into account to attempt to quantify defensive value.

“I feel really good,” Perdomo told Arizona Sports on Friday. “I feel like I put a lot of really good work in with (bench coach Jeff Banister) and (infielder coach Shaun Larkin). Working a little bit more on movements in the weight room and outside, different angles, that’s made me feel really good.

“I always play confident. This year I’ve just been more focused on my defense. … I’ve been practicing more with one hand and I think this has been helping me a lot with some different ground balls, but I haven’t changed much.”

Perdomo was fourth among 16 NL shortstops with at least 300 innings in fielding percentage (.984) entering Sunday, although he leads the position group in putouts.

Betts’ metrics are quite impressive, but he has only played 59 games this season. Perdomo has posted nearly 300 more innings, as Miami’s Otto Lopez is the only shortstop in the majors with more frames logged.

Outs above average is a range-based stat, and no shortstop in the NL has more combined DRS and OAA than Perdomo at 14.

All to say, Perdomo is on pace for the best defensive season of his career on paper and with the eye test, even as a good-to-very-good defender throughout his D-backs tenure before last season.

He is a big shortstop at 6-foot-2 without elite speed or arm strength, but he has worked to make up the difference where he can.

“He’s worked very hard at securing the baseball, that was a huge point of emphasis for us this spring,” manager Torey Lovullo, a former infielder who takes the position group personally, said last week.

“I wasn’t pleased with it, and I came in aggressively with Shaun Larkin and the rest of the guys to say we’ve got to be better. So, they took that to heart. I think Perdomo’s the leader of our defense. The ball is in and out of his glove. Strong, accurate throws. The carelessness that I saw last year has not showed up at all this year.”

Geraldo Perdomo takes away a hit with a beautiful diving stop 🤩 pic.twitter.com/wEut5nKmoX

— MLB (@MLB) April 15, 2026

Diamondbacks playing crisp defense as a team

The Diamondbacks have played much better defensively in 2026 than in 2025, which was a significant goal entering the spring. It is a reason the bullpen has exceeded expectations. All-Star pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez — for whom the gloves let down last season — said he would not have made the Midsummer Classic without a strong defense.

Only the San Diego Padres have committed fewer errors than Arizona’s 35 this season. From DRS to OAA to defensive WAR to fielding run value, the metrics all have Arizona solidly among the top four defenses in the league, and pitching metrics bare this out too.

Arizona owns a 4.25 ERA this year, right in the middle of the pack at 15th in baseball. Its FIP (fielding-independent pitching) is 4.43, 23rd in MLB.

Nolan Arenado has played mostly solidly at third base save for a few errors that dropped his DRS to two. His diving catch on Sunday stunned a Dodger Stadium crowd looking for any reason to get loud. Perdomo was eager to soak up what he could from Arenado this year, and the latter is a 10-time Gold Glove winner. That catch on Sunday was vintage for the 35-year-old.

Ildemaro Vargas has been one of the better defensive first basemen in baseball with six DRS, even with a new glove.

Catcher Gabriel Moreno and right fielder Corbin Carroll are on pace to receive some Gold Glove consideration, as well.

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