Cardinals' Molina, Wainwright are finalists for NL Gold Gloves

ST. LOUIS -- The St. Louis Cardinals' battery of Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina is more than just a highly effective pitching duo whose members also wield potent bats. They're top-caliber fielders, too.

The folks at Rawlings recognized that Thursday when the Cardinals' pitcher and catcher were named finalists for 2016 National League Gold Glove Awards. Winners will be announced Nov. 8.

Molina has won eight Gold Gloves already in his career -- the last eight in the NL, in fact, from 2008 through last season. If he wins again, he'll be one shy of Ivan Rodriguez and Johnny Bench (10 straight awards each) for the major league record for catchers. The other NL finalists at catcher are San Francisco's Buster Posey and Jonathan Lucroy, who spent four months with Milwaukee before being traded to Texas on Aug. 1.

Wainwright is a two-time Gold Glove winner, in 2009 and 2013. His competition for the 2016 award comprises Chicago's Jake Arrieta and Arizona's Zack Greinke.

Winners are based on voting by major league managers and coaches (75 percent) and members of the sabermetrics community (25 percent).