News
Pujols nominated for Clemente Award
Reigning winner proves he's an MVP off the field, too
By Matthew Leach / MLB.com
09/02/09 12:00 PM ET
ST. LOUIS -- Albert Pujols is a two-time National League Most Valuable Player, and he's closing in on a third. So why not a second Roberto Clemente Award?After being named the Clemente winner in 2008, Pujols is once again the Cardinals' nominee for the award, which is one of the greatest prizes that baseball gives. No player has won the Clemente Award twice.
The award recognizes the player who best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement and the individual's contribution to his team. It is named in honor of the former Pirates outfielder, whose spirit and goodwill will always be remembered. Clemente died in a plane crash while attempting to transport relief supplies to earthquake-stricken Nicaragua on Dec. 31, 1972.
Fans can participate in the selection process of the overall winner of the award now through Oct. 4. The fan ballot winner will be tallied as one vote among those cast by a special selection panel of baseball dignitaries and media members. The panel includes MLB Commissioner Bud Selig and Vera Clemente, widow of the Pirates' Hall of Fame right fielder whose spirit and goodwill always will be remembered. The winner will be announced during the World Series.
Voting fans also will be automatically registered for a chance to win a trip to the 2009 World Series, where the national winner of the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevy will be announced.
Besides Pujols, two other players have won the Clemente Award and an MVP in the same season: Sammy Sosa in 1998 and Rod Carew in 1977. It's now possible that Pujols could pull off an unprecedented double-double.
"That award meant a lot to me, because not just the great player Roberto Clemente was, but the passion that he had off the field to spend time with people," Pujols said on Monday at his annual charity golf tournament. "That's what impresses me the most. He had that responsibility back then, and that's my responsibility, too."
In addition to his work on the field, Pujols has been extremely active in the community. He lends his name and his time to the Pujols Family Foundation, which is dedicated to improving people's lives in St. Louis and in his native Dominican Republic -- especially the lives of people with Down syndrome. His daughter, Isabella, has Down syndrome.
The Foundation leads an annual venture to the Dominican to provide care for people in need in Pujols' homeland. This year, the plan is to go shortly after the baseball season ends with a team of dentists to provide dental care and education to youngsters in the Dominican.
"I think it's my responsibility to give back," Pujols said. "To win an award like the Clemente, it's an honor. If he would have been alive now, I'd ask him why he did what he did. And I'm pretty sure his answer would be because he cares about people. That's the way that I was raised. That's the way that I grew up. My dad always told me that it's not about myself. It's about caring about other people. That's the way that I was raised."
Besides Pujols' work with the foundation and in the Dominican, he's been involved in plenty of other causes in greater St. Louis as well. He has also supported the Ronald McDonald House, Autism Speaks, the Boys and Girls Club and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
Matthew Leach is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
