St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina smiles to his bench as he removes a baseball that became stuck to his chest protector during the seventh inning against the Chicago Cubs at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on April 6, 2017. Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

Four Kansas City Royals – center fielder Lorenzo Cain, left fielder Alex Gordon, first baseman Eric Hosmer and catcher Salvador Perez – have been named finalists for 2017 American League Gold Glove Awards.  The Royals’ four finalists have combined to win 11 Rawlings Gold Glove Awards in their careers, with both Gordon (2011-14) and Perez (2013-16) having won four-straight, while Hosmer won three in a row (2013-15).  Cain is looking to win his first Rawlings Gold Glove Award.

Yadier Molina, whose run of eight consecutive Gold Glove Awards was upended by Buster Posey last year, has been named a finalist for the honor once again.

The winners will be revealed on Tuesday, November 7 at 8 p.m. CT, during a special edition of “Baseball Tonight – The 2017 Rawlings Gold Glove Award Announcement Show”, which will air on ESPN.  The Rawlings Gold Glove Awards honor the best individual fielding performances at each position in the American League and National League, as voted by Major League managers and coaches.

Kansas City’s four finalists are tied for the most in the Major Leagues, matching Boston, Cincinnati, Cleveland and the Los Angeles Angels.

Cain is attempting to become the first Royals center fielder to win a Rawlings Gold Glove since Willie Wilson in 1980.  He led American League center fielders in starts (151), total chances (443) and putouts (430).  The other center field finalists are Toronto’s Kevin Pillar and Minnesota’s Byron Buxton.

Gordon is attempting to win his fifth Rawlings Gold Glove Award (2011-14). The only other Royal to win five or more was eight-time winner, Frank White (1977-82, ’86-87).  He is one of three players to be named a finalist for a Gold Glove Award each year since Rawlings started naming finalists in 2011, along with St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina and Boston second baseman Dustin Pedroia.   The other left field finalists for this season are the Yankees’ Brett Gardner and the Angels’ Justin Upton.

Hosmer is seeking his fourth Rawlings Gold Glove Award, winning three-straight from 2013-15.  He is the only Royals first baseman to be honored.  Other nominations at first base include Cleveland’s Carlos Santana and Boston’s Mitch Moreland.

Perez is also up for a fifth-straight Rawlings Gold Glove Award, while he is the second KC backstop to earn the honor, along with Bob Boone (1989).  Should he win, Perez would become the first AL catcher to win as many as five-straight Rawlings Gold Gloves since Ivan ‘Pudge’ Rodriguez was honored 10-straight years (1992-2001) and the second Royal to win five or more in a row at any position, joining Frank White (1977-82).   Other finalists include: Cleveland’s Yan Gomes and Martin Maldonado of the Los Angeles Angels.

A ninth Gold Glove would move Molina closer to prestigious catching company. The only catchers to have won the award more times than Molina are Ivan Rodriguez (13) and Johnny Bench (10). Molina would also move into a tie with Bob Gibson for the second-most Gold Glove Awards for a Cardinals player. Ozzie Smith’s mark of 11 remains the franchise record.