ROYALS TO RECOGNIZE 2023 ROBERTO CLEMENTE AWARD NOMINEE SALVADOR PEREZ ON FRIDAY

By Royals Release September 11, 2023

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Major League Baseball announced last week that Salvador Perez was named the Royals 2023 nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Capital One, baseball’s most prestigious individual honor for Major Leaguers. Perez will be recognized for his local nomination for the Roberto Clemente Award during pregame before the Royals host the Houston Astros on Friday, Sept. 15 at Kauffman Stadium.

“Everybody knows I love to play baseball, but I love to help people just as much,” Perez said. “This isn’t why any of us do it, but being connected with Roberto Clemente is humbling, and I hope that continuing to honor his legacy inspires others to help as well.”

The Roberto Clemente Award presented by Capital One is the annual recognition of a Major League player who best represents the game of baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy and positive contributions, both on and off the field.

The annual program allows each MLB Club to nominate one player to be considered for the league-wide Award in tribute to Clemente’s achievements and character.

“Salvy became the fourth Captain in Royals history this year, and it wasn’t just for his talents and leadership in the clubhouse,” Royals Executive Vice President – General Manager J.J. Picollo said. “Our fans see the energy he brings to our club every night, and we are proud to celebrate all that he does off the field as well.”

Each year, Perez sponsors hundreds of kids in a baseball academy along with dozens of clinics in his home country of Venezuela. He has paid for reconstructive surgeries for children born with cleft lips, as well as provided thousands of toys for children’s hospitals, meals for families in need, and support for Venezuelan police officers and their families. He has personally coached in the Carlos Fortuna Organization, providing training and support to the families of boys from Latin America who are working to become professional baseball players.

Perez was a charter sponsor of the Kansas City Urban Youth Academy with a donation of $1 million, and has personally mentored and coached underserved youth in Kansas City. He has also partnered with Braden’s Hope for Childhood Cancer, among many other charitable efforts in and around his adopted hometown.

“Salvy is one of the most important athletes in the history of our city and franchise, and this award is a reminder that his influence goes far beyond the field,” Royals Chairman and CEO John Sherman said. “He has left an enormous positive impact in Venezuela, here in Kansas City, and so many other places through his endless energy and generosity.”

Friday, Sept. 15th marks the 22nd annual Roberto Clemente Day presented by Capital One, which was established by Major League Baseball to honor Clemente’s legacy as a humanitarian and to formally acknowledge Club nominees of the Roberto Clemente Award. As part of the league-wide celebration, the Roberto Clemente Day logo will appear on the bases and official dugout lineup cards and a customized tribute video to Roberto will be shown in all MLB ballparks on Roberto Clemente Day as well as on MLB Network, MLB.com, Club sites and MLB Social Media Platforms.

The league-wide winner of the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Capital One will be honored at the 2023 World Series following selection by a blue-ribbon panel. This panel includes representatives from the Commissioner’s Office, Capital One, MLB-affiliated networks (MLB Network, FOX Sports, ESPN and TBS), MLB.com, the National Baseball Hall of Fame, as well as Roberto’s children, Enrique, Luis and Roberto Clemente, Jr. Beginning today, fans can vote for the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Capital One via MLBTogether.com/clemente21 (in both English and Spanish). The site, which will feature bios of each of the nominees, will allow fans to vote until the end of the season on Sunday, Oct. 1. The winner of the fan vote will count as one vote among those cast by the blue-ribbon panel.

The concept of honoring Major League players for their philanthropic work was created in 1971 as the “Commissioner’s Award.” The recognition was renamed to the “Roberto Clemente Award” in 1973 tribute to Clemente following his passing.