Since 1971, Major League Baseball has awarded the Roberto Clemente Award to those who show “extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy, and positive contributions, both on and off the field.” The original winner was Willie Mays and since then 52 players have received the award. In this series, we will look at the previous ten winners and explore how they earned this honor.

10# Justin Turner (2022) Los Angeles Dodgers

The most recent recipient of the award was Justin Turner of the Los Angeles Dodgers. It was his fifth nomination for the prestigious honor and his first win. A man originally meant to be a non-roster invitee became an indelible part of the Los Angeles landscape. Not only with moments with hitting a walk-off home run in the 2017 NLCS, and helping the Dodgers get their first World Series winner since 1988, it was his humanitarian efforts that landed him this award.

According to the Justin Turner Foundation, Justin and his wife Kourtney began a mission in 2016 to “support homeless veterans, children (and their families) battling life-altering illnesses and diseases, and various youth baseball organizations.” As of 2023, they have housed 44 homeless veterans and have provided over 70,000 toys/14,000 bicycles to children in the Los Angeles area during the holidays.

In 2018, they put up 100,000 Dollars to the Dream Center in Los Angeles to support their foster child intervention program. They’ve hosted tournaments, helped said Dream Center during the Covid Pandemic to deliver 900,000 meals in an 82-day period, and regularly visit children’s hospitals to cheer the children during difficult times.

As a result of his early contributions from 2016 to 2018, the city of Los Angeles declared January 22nd, 2019 to be Justin Turner Day.

While no longer in Dodger Blue, his legacy of home runs and selflessness off the field leaves Justin Turner in the hearts of millions.

If you would like to donate to the Justin Turner Foundation, there will be a link below.

Justin Turner Foundation

#9 Nelson Cruz (2021) Minnesota Twins / Tampa Bay Rays

The long-time major leaguer has been at the center of several impactful moments in the history of Baseball. The 30-3 game between the Texas Rangers VS the Baltimore Orioles where he went two for seven. He hit eight home runs in the 2011 postseason, famously a grand slam to walk off the Detroit Tigers in Game Two of the ALCS. Having nearly four straight seasons of 40 or more home runs with the Baltimore Orioles. A legacy that will sadly be clouded by his involvement in the Biogenesis Steroid Scandal. However, even through the murky fields, Cruz continued to be a human being and a kind soul at that, specifically during the Covid-19 Crisis.

According to SI.com, he helped his hometown of Las Matas de Santa Cruz, Dominican Republic by donating financially to over 1,200 families and helping to feed 700 at that. He donated a Firetruck and equipment when a friend’s house burned down. He also helped bring dentists and eye doctors to his town’s clinic for regular checkups for his fellow townspeople.

Most importantly, he began a non-profit organization called Boomstick 23 Foundation, after his nickname in the big leagues. According to their mission, they are “committed to generating social impact by empowering children and young people in situations of social vulnerability; developing skills and abilities through education and sports to improve the environment and their quality of life. Our vision is to be recognized internationally as a successful model of empowerment, built on efficient and sustainable programs with a high social impact, allowing the development of leaders who adopt sports and education to promote a better quality of life among children and youth in the United States.”

Thanks to these contributions, he not only received the Roberto Clemente Award in 2021 but also the 2020 ESPY'S Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award for his efforts. A link will be listed below for those who would like to contribute to Cruz’s foundation.

Boomstick 23 Foundation

#8 Adam Wainwright (2020) St. Louis Cardinals

For the third time since 2013, a St. Louis Cardinal takes home the prestigious honor of the Roberto Clemente Award. This time it was aging All-Star Pitcher Adam Wainwright. Wainwright was no stranger to the spotlight. He famously struck out Carlos Beltran (2013 St. Louis Recipient) on a curveball to send them to their eventual World Series title in 2006. He hit a home run on the first pitch he ever saw in the big leagues, and came in second for the Cy Young award in 2010. However, it was this award that Wainwright was quoted as saying,

According to the Associated Press, Wainwright teamed up with singer Garth Brooks and pitcher Kyle Gibson to raise over 5.8 Million dollars from over 150 Big Leaguers to 94 different charities. “The effort provided more than 4 million meals to prevent childhood hunger during the coronavirus pandemic and nearly 8 million meals in all.”

He also built a secondary school in Haiti along with building a clean water system for their community and several other projects as quoted in the Associated Press, “…funded the construction of a clean water system servicing more than 15,000 people in Honduras; purchased 11 acres in Ethiopia for the site of a clinic and a dairy and crop farm; partnered with Crisis Aid International to feed children in Africa and aid sex trafficking victims; and works with Crisis Aid to provide weekly meals for 3,000 families, including 200 families annually in South St. Louis.”

Big League Impact has its mission, “…reflect the beliefs of family, friends and supporters that we are citizens of a global community who ought to care for one another.”

Big League Impact has announced on its website, that “since 2013,… they have raised over $8 million for charitable causes and foundations through events that raise awareness and donations from local philanthropists who are drawn to the causes our players care about.”

If you would like to donate to Big League Impact, visit the link below.

Big League Impact

#8 Carlos Carrasco 2019 (Cleveland Indians)

A player dubbed Cookie, was a major force for the then Cleveland Indians for the better part of a decade. Originally with the Philadelphia Phillies, he was traded in 2009 to the Indians for Cliff Lee. He quickly made his debut and has not looked back. In a four-year stretch from 2014 to 2018, he had a 3.27 ERA going 68-43, and helped the Indians make it to their first World Series since 1997 in 2017. However in 2019, the same year he won this award, he was diagnosed with a treatable form of Leukemia and missed a sizable portion of the season. He did return in September, pitching in relief for the AL Central Champs. For his efforts, he was also awarded Comeback Player of The Year.

However, it was his humanitarian efforts that led him to the main award. Linked below is a fantastic article from Zack Meisel of the Athletic, detailing in great fashion how Carlos became involved with his wife Karelis in these efforts even during his Cancer scare.

Carlos's Story

As quoted from Meisel “He started his own foundation in 2016. He and his wife, Karelis, have traveled the globe, and they make sure to include some form of charity work at each stop. They have helped build schools in Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Colombia, Mexico, Peru and India. Last winter, when they weren’t enjoying breakfast with giraffes or listening to lions dash across the plains in the middle of the night, they were donating New Balance bags, T-shirts and shoes in Africa. In all, he donated $70,000 to families from the African villages.”

Carlos has set up scholarships, distributed meals in the off-season, giving out toys and supplies to people who need them.

Even dealing with death, he would still donate and try to make kids with Leukemia happy.

One last thing, in grand serendipity, the Cleveland Indians held the All-Star game in 2019, and during the game, they had their stand up to Cancer moment, and fellow Indians players brought Carlos out and he was given an ovation. Couldn’t have happened to a better human being. As usual the link to his and his’s wife foundation are below.

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