Roberto Clemente Award
SportBaseball
LeagueMajor League Baseball
Awarded forThe player that "best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement, and the individual's contribution to his team"
CountryUnited States, Canada
Presented byMajor League Baseball
History
First award1971
Most recentAaron Judge, New York Yankees

The Roberto Clemente Award is given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) player who "best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement and the individual's contribution to his team", as voted on by baseball fans and members of the media. It is named for Hall of Fame outfielder Roberto Clemente. Originally known as the Commissioner's Award, it has been presented by MLB since 1971. In 1973, the award was renamed after Clemente following his death in a plane crash while he was delivering supplies to victims of the Nicaragua earthquake.[1]

Each year, a panel of baseball dignitaries selects one player from among 30 nominees, one from each club. Teams choose their nominee during the regular season, and the winner is announced at the World Series.[1] The player who receives the most votes online via MLB's official website, MLB.com, gets one vote in addition to the votes cast by the panel.[1] Since 2007, the Roberto Clemente Award has been presented by Chevy. Chevy donates money and a Chevy vehicle to the recipient's charity of choice and additional money is donated by Chevy to the Roberto Clemente Sports City, a non-profit organization in Carolina, Puerto Rico, that provides national sports activities for children. Chevy donates additional funds to the charity of choice of each of the 30 club nominees.[1]

The first recipient of the award was Willie Mays, and the most recent honoree is Aaron Judge. No player has received the award more than once. The first pitcher to receive the award was Phil Niekro in 1980, and the first catcher to receive it was Gary Carter in 1989.[1] The team to have the most winners representing their club is the St. Louis Cardinals. To date, Clemente's former teammate Willie Stargell and Andrew McCutchen are the only members of the Pittsburgh Pirates to receive the honor. Stargell won his award in 1974 and McCutchen in 2015. The Pirates themselves have worn Clemente-era throwback uniforms in recent years on Roberto Clemente Day, on which day they present their award nominee to MLB.[2] In 2014, the award was presented to two players—Paul Konerko and Jimmy Rollins—for the first, and to date, only time.

Honorees

In 1971, Willie Mays was the first recipient of the award.
Don Baylor received the award in 1985.
1992 recipient Cal Ripken Jr.
Tony Gwynn was the 1999 recipient.
The first Boston player to receive the award was Tim Wakefield in 2010.
The 2016 award went to Curtis Granderson.
Key
†
 Member of the Baseball Hall of Fame
^ Player is still active
Recipients by year
Year Player Team League Position
1971 Willie Mays † San Francisco Giants National Outfielder
1972 Brooks Robinson † Baltimore Orioles American Third baseman
1973 Al Kaline † Detroit Tigers American Outfielder
1974 Willie Stargell † Pittsburgh Pirates National Outfielder
1975 Lou Brock † St. Louis Cardinals National Outfielder
1976 Pete Rose Cincinnati Reds National Third baseman
1977 Rod Carew † Minnesota Twins American First baseman
1978 Greg Luzinski Philadelphia Phillies National Outfielder
1979 Andre Thornton Cleveland Indians American First baseman
1980 Phil Niekro † Atlanta Braves National Pitcher
1981 Steve Garvey Los Angeles Dodgers National First baseman
1982 Ken Singleton Baltimore Orioles American Designated hitter
1983 Cecil Cooper Milwaukee Brewers American First baseman
1984 Ron Guidry New York Yankees American Pitcher
1985 Don Baylor New York Yankees American Designated hitter
1986 Garry Maddox Philadelphia Phillies National Outfielder
1987 Rick Sutcliffe Chicago Cubs National Pitcher
1988 Dale Murphy Atlanta Braves National Outfielder
1989 Gary Carter † New York Mets National Catcher
1990 Dave Stewart Oakland Athletics American Pitcher
1991 Harold Reynolds Seattle Mariners American Second baseman
1992 Cal Ripken Jr. † Baltimore Orioles American Shortstop
1993 Barry Larkin † Cincinnati Reds National Shortstop
1994 Dave Winfield † Minnesota Twins American Designated hitter
1995 Ozzie Smith † St. Louis Cardinals National Shortstop
1996 Kirby Puckett † Minnesota Twins American Outfielder
1997 Eric Davis Baltimore Orioles American Outfielder
1998 Sammy Sosa Chicago Cubs National Outfielder
1999 Tony Gwynn † San Diego Padres National Outfielder
2000 Al Leiter New York Mets National Pitcher
2001 Curt Schilling Arizona Diamondbacks National Pitcher
2002 Jim Thome † Cleveland Indians American First baseman
2003 Jamie Moyer Seattle Mariners American Pitcher
2004 Edgar Martínez † Seattle Mariners American Designated hitter
2005 John Smoltz † Atlanta Braves National Pitcher
2006 Carlos Delgado New York Mets National First baseman
2007 Craig Biggio † Houston Astros National Second baseman
2008 Albert Pujols St. Louis Cardinals National First baseman
2009 Derek Jeter † New York Yankees American Shortstop
2010 Tim Wakefield Boston Red Sox American Pitcher
2011 David Ortiz † Boston Red Sox American Designated hitter
2012 Clayton Kershaw^ Los Angeles Dodgers National Pitcher
2013 Carlos Beltrán St. Louis Cardinals National Outfielder
2014[a] Paul Konerko Chicago White Sox American First baseman
Jimmy Rollins Philadelphia Phillies National Shortstop
2015 Andrew McCutchen^ Pittsburgh Pirates National Outfielder
2016 Curtis Granderson New York Mets National Outfielder
2017 Anthony Rizzo^ Chicago Cubs National First baseman
2018 Yadier Molina St. Louis Cardinals National Catcher
2019 Carlos Carrasco^ Cleveland Indians American Pitcher
2020 Adam Wainwright St. Louis Cardinals National Pitcher
2021 Nelson Cruz Tampa Bay Rays
Minnesota Twins[b]		 American Designated hitter
2022 Justin Turner^ Los Angeles Dodgers National Third baseman
2023 Aaron Judge^ New York Yankees American Outfielder
  1. ^ In 2014, there were two recipients of the award, one in each league.
  2. ^ Cruz was traded from the Twins to the Rays shortly after the All-Star break, but was nominated for the award by the Twins.

See also

References

General
  • "Roberto Clemente Award". Major League Baseball. Archived from the original on October 6, 2009. Retrieved September 2, 2009.
  • "Roberto Clemente Award winners". Major League Baseball. Archived from the original on November 30, 2009. Retrieved September 2, 2009.
  • "The Hutch Award, Lou Gehrig Award, Babe Ruth Award & Roberto Clemente Award Winners". Baseball-Reference.com. Archived from the original on May 31, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2009.
  • "Roberto Clemente Award Winners". ESPN Internet Ventures. ESPN Internet Ventures. Archived from the original on November 2, 2012. Retrieved September 2, 2009.
Specific
  1. ^ a b c d e "Roberto Clemente Award – About the award". Major League Baseball. Archived from the original on July 10, 2009. Retrieved May 24, 2009.
  2. ^ "Pirates' McCutchen Nominated For Clemente Award". KDKA-TV. September 16, 2013. Archived from the original on March 8, 2016. Retrieved September 7, 2016.

External links

Roberto Clemente
Roberto Clemente Award
Major League Baseball awards and trophies
Categories