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First awarded in December 1957 by the Rawlings Sporting Goods Company, the Gold Glove Award honors the top fielders at each position in each league. Honorees, originally selected by a panel of distinguished sportswriters, were chosen by fellow players starting in 1958. Since 1965, managers and coaches have decided the winners.

Beacuse of the subjective nature of the voting, the awards have often been criticized for honoring players based on reputation rather than statistics. Perhaps the most egregious example was the Gold Glove awarded in 1999 to the Rangers' Rafael Palmeiro, who had played just 28 games at first base and had just been named the league's outstanding DH.

The most-decorated honorees are Brooks Robinson and Jim Kaat, both of whom won sixteen Gold Gloves in their careers.