One of the most professional awards given by the MLB is the Roberto Clemente Award, formerly known as the Commissioner’s Award. Named after MLB Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente, it recognizes and honors baseball players for their services to community, baseball skills, contributions to their team and sportsmanship.
Every year, all the MLB teams nominate one of their players for the award. After that, the fans decide which of these players get to win the award every year by voting their favorites. The player to receive the most number of votes wins the Roberto Clemente Award for that year. Willie Mays was the first ever baseball player to receive the Award in 1971. It was renamed to its present name following Roberto Clemente’s death in a plane crash in 1973. Chevy has presented the award since 2007. They provide money and a car to a charity organization chosen by the award winner. They also donate money to the Roberto Clemente Sports City in Carolina, Puerto Rico. This is a non-profit organization that creates sports activities on a national level for children.
The 2023 nominations for the Roberto Clemente Award have already been presented by the MLB teams. Once again, it is up to the MLB fans to decide who wins the Roberto Clemente Award in 2023.
All Players Who have Won the Roberto Clemente Award
Here is a list of all the players who have won the Roberto Clemente Award till 2022 as per mlb.com.
| Year | Player Name and Position | MLB Team |
| 1971 | Willie Mays (OF) | San Francisco Giants |
| 1972 | Brooks Robinson (3B) | Baltimore Orioles |
| 1973 | Al Kaline (OF) | Detroit Tigers |
| 1974 | Willie Stargell (1B) | Pittsburgh Pirates |
| 1975 | Lou Brock (OF) | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 1976 | Pete Rose (3B) | Cincinnati Reds |
| 1977 | Rod Carew (1B) | Minnesota Twins |
| 1978 | Greg Luzinski (OF) | Philadelphia Phillies |
| 1979 | Andre Thornton (OF) | Cleveland Indians |
| 1980 | Phil Niekro (P) | Atlanta Braves |
| 1981 | Steve Garvey (1B) | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| 1982 | Ken Singleton (DH) | Baltimore Orioles |
| 1983 | Cecil Cooper (1B) | Milwaukee Brewers |
| 1984 | Ron Guidry (P) | New York Yankees |
| 1985 | Don Baylor (DH) | New York Yankees |
| 1986 | Gary Maddox (OF) | Philadelphia Phillies |
| 1987 | Rick Sutcliffe (P) | Chicago Cubs |
| 1988 | Dale Murphy (OF) | Atlanta Braves |
| 1989 | Gary Carter (C) | New York Mets |
| 1990 | Dave Stewart (P) | Oakland Athletics |
| 1991 | Harold Reynolds (2B) | Seattle Mariners |
| 1992 | Cal Ripken Jr. (SS) | Baltimore Orioles |
| 1993 | Barry Larkin (SS) | Cincinnati Reds |
| 1994 | Dave Winfield (DH) | Minnesota Twins |
| 1995 | Ozzie Smith (SS) | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 1996 | Kirby Puckett (OF) | Minnesota Twins |
| 1997 | Eric Davis (OF) | Baltimore Orioles |
| 1998 | Sammy Sosa (OF) | Chicago Cubs |
| 1999 | Tony Gwynn (OF) | San Diego Padres |
| 2000 | Al Leiter (P) | New York Mets |
| 2001 | Curt Schilling (P) | Arizona Diamondbacks |
| 2002 | Jim Thome (1B) | Cleveland Indians |
| 2003 | Jamie Moyer (P) | Seattle Mariners |
| 2004 | Edgar Martinez (DH) | Seattle Mariners |
| 2005 | John Smoltz (P) | Atlanta Braves |
| 2006 | Carlos Delgado (1B) | New York Mets |
| 2007 | Craig Biggio (2B) | Houston Astros |
| 2008 | Albert Pujols (1B) | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 2009 | Derek Jeter (SS) | New York Yankees |
| 2010 | Tim Wakefield (P) | Boston Red Sox |
| 2011 | David Ortiz (DH) | Boston Red Sox |
| 2012 | Clayton Kershaw (P) | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| 2013 | Carlos Beltran (OF) | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 2014 | Jimmy Rollins (SS)Paul Konerko (1B) | Philadelphia Phillies Chicago White Sox |
| 2015 | Andrew McCutchen (CF) | Pittsburgh Pirates |
| 2016 | Curtis Granderson (CF) | New York Mets |
| 2017 | Anthony Rizzo (1B) | Chicago Cubs |
| 2018 | Yadier Molina (C) | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 2019 | Carlos Carrasco (P) | Cleveland Indians |
| 2020 | Adam Wainwright (P) | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 2021 | Nelson Cruz (DH) | Minnesota Twins |
| 2022 | Justin Turner (3B) | Los Angeles Dodgers |
List of Baseball Players Nominated for Clemente Award Year by Year
These are the players who have been nominated for the Roberto Clemente Award over the years.
| 2023 Nominations | 2022 Nominations | 2021 Nominations | 2020 Nominations | 2019 Nominations |
| Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Toronto Blue Jays) | Bo Bichette (Toronto Blue Jays) | Bo Bichette (Toronto Blue Jays) | Danny Jansen (Toronto Blue Jays) | Eduardo Escobar (Arizona Diamondbacks) |
| Kyle Gibson (Baltimore Orioles) | Dillon Tate (Baltimore Orioles) | Trey Mancini (Baltimore Orioles) | Hanser Alberto (Baltimore Orioles) | Charlie Culberson (Atlanta Braves) |
| Shane McClanahan (Tampa Bay Rays) | Brandon Lowe (Tampa Bay Rays) | Ryan Yarbrough (Tampa Bay Rays) | Charlie Morton (Tampa Bay Rays) | Chris Davis (Baltimore Orioles) |
| Tanner Houck (Boston Red Sox) | Jake Diekman (Boston Red Sox) | Nathan Eovaldi (Boston Red Sox) | Mitch Moreland (Boston Red Sox) | Brock Holt (Boston Red Sox) |
| Aaron Judge (New York Yankees) | Jose Trevino (New York Yankees) | Kyle Higashioka (New York Yankees) | Giancarlo Stanton (New York Yankees) | Jon Lester (Chicago Cubs) |
| Jose Ramirez (Cleveland Guardians) | Triston McKenzie (Cleveland Guardians) | Aaron Civale (Cleveland Indians) | Brad Hand (Cleveland Indians) | Tim Anderson (Chicago White Sox) |
| Salvador Perez (Kansas City Royals) | Nicky Lopez (Kansas City Royals) | Salvador Perez (Kansas City Royals) | Ian Kennedy (Kansas City Royals) | Michael Lorenzen (Cincinnati Reds) |
| Miguel Cabrera (Detroit Tigers) | Miguel Cabrera (Detroit Tigers) | Miguel Cabrera (Detroit Tigers) | Miguel Cabrera (Detroit Tigers) | Carlos Carrasco (Cleveland Indians) |
| Carlos Correa (Minnesota Twins) | Byron Buxton (Minnesota Twins) | Nelson Cruz (Minnesota Twins) | Nelson Cruz (Minnesota Twins) | Ian Desmond (Colorado Rockies) |
| Liam Hendricks (Chicago White Sox) | Liam Hendricks (Chicago White Sox) | Liam Hendricks (Chicago White Sox) | Tim Anderson (Chicago White Sox) | Miguel Cabrera (Detroit Tigers) |
| Mike Trout (Los Angeles Angels) | Jared Walsh (Los Angeles Angels) | Mike Trout (Los Angeles Angels) | Mike Trout (Los Angeles Angels) | Alex Bregman (Houston Astros) |
| Jeremy Pena (Houston Astros) | Jose Altuve (Houston Astros) | Alex Bregman (Houston Astros) | Alex Bregman (Houston Astros) | Alex Gordon (Kansas City Royals) |
| Tony Kemp (Oakland Athletics) | Tony Kemp (Oakland Athletics) | Tony Kemp (Oakland Athletics) | Tony Kemp (Oakland Athletics) | Andrew Heaney (Los Angeles Angels) |
| Marco Gonzales (Seattle Mariners) | Marco Gonzales (Seattle Mariners) | Kyle Seager (Seattle Mariners) | Dee Strange-Gordon (Seattle Mariners) | Kenley Jansen (Los Angeles Dodgers) |
| Jon Gray (Texas Rangers) | Taylor Hearn (Texas Rangers) | Jose Trevino (Texas Rangers) | Shin-Soo Choo (Texas Rangers) | Martin Prado (Miami Marlins) |
| Matt Olson (Atlanta Braves) | Tyler Matzek (Atlanta Braves) | Will Smith (Atlanta Braves) | Freddie Freeman (Atlanta Braves) | Chase Anderson (Milwaukee Brewers) |
| Jorge Soler (Miami Marlins) | Pablo Lopez (Miami Marlins) | Miguel Rojas (Miami Marlins) | Miguel Rojas (Miami Marlins) | Kyle Gibson (Minnesota Twins) |
| Francisco Lindor (New York Mets) | James McCann (New York Mets) | Pete Alonso (New York Mets) | Steven Matz (New York Mets) | Steven Matz (New York Mets) |
| Josiah Gray (Washington Nationals) | Josh Bell (Washington Nationals) | Max Scherzer (Washington Nationals) | Sean Doolittle (Washington Nationals) | CC Sabathia (New York Yankees) |
| Kyle Schwarber (Philadelphia Phillies) | Kyle Gibson (Philadelphia Phillies) | Alec Bohm (Philadelphia Phillies) | Aaron Nola (Philadelphia Phillies) | Liam Hendricks (Oakland Athletics) |
| Christian Yelich (Milwaukee Brewers) | Brent Suter (Milwaukee Brewers) | Brent Suter (Milwaukee Brewers) | Brent Suter (Milwaukee Brewers) | Rhys Hoskins (Philadelphia Phillies) |
| Paul Goldschmidt (St. Louis Cardinals) | Paul Goldschmidt (St. Louis Cardinals) | Paul Goldschmidt (St. Louis Cardinals) | Adam Wainwright (St. Louis Cardinals) | Trevor Williams (Pittsburgh Pirates) |
| Marcus Stroman (Chicago Cubs) | Jason Heyward (Chicago Cubs) | Jason Heyward (Chicago Cubs) | Jason Heyward (Chicago Cubs) | Hunter Renfroe (San Diego Padres) |
| David Bednar (Pittsburgh Pirates) | David Bednar (Pittsburgh Pirates) | Jacob Satllings (Pittsburgh Pirates) | Josh Bell (Pittsburgh Pirates) | Pablo Sandoval (San Francisco Giants) |
| Hunter Greene (Cincinnati Reds) | Joey Votto (Cincinnati Reds) | Joey Votto (Cincinnati Reds) | Tucker Barnhart (Cincinnati Reds) | Dee Gordon (Seattle Mariners) |
| Nick Ahmed (Arizona Diamondbacks) | Josh Rojas (Arizona Diamondbacks) | David Peralta (Arizona Diamondbacks) | Eduardo Escobar (Arizona Diamondbacks) | Adam Wainwright (St. Louis Cardinals) |
| Chris Taylor (Los Angeles Dodgers) | Justin Turner (Los Angeles Dodgers) | Justin Turner (Los Angeles Dodgers) | Justin Turner (Los Angeles Dodgers) | Kevin Kiermaier (Tampa Bay Rays) |
| Brandon Crawford (San Francisco Giants) | Brandon Crawford (San Francisco Giants) | Brandon Crawford (San Francisco Giants) | Hunter Pence (San Francisco Giants) | Elvis Andrus (Texas Rangers) |
| Tim Hill (San Diego Padres) | Craig Stammen (San Diego Padres) | Joe Musgrove (San Diego Padres) | Drew Pomeranz (San Diego Padres) | Randal Grichuk (Toronto Blue Jays) |
| Kyle Freeland (Colorado Rockies) | Kyle Freeland (Colorado Rockies) | Ian Desmond (Colorado Rockies) | Ian Desmond (Colorado Rockies) | Anthony Rendon (Washington Nationals) |
| 2018 Nominations | 2017 Nominations | 2016 Nominations | 2015 Nominations | 2014 Nominations |
| Paul Goldschmidt (Arizona Diamondbacks) | Chris Davis (Baltimore Orioles) | Paul Goldschmidt (Arizona Diamondbacks) | Paul Goldschmidt (Arizona Diamondbacks) | Paul Goldschmidt (Arizona Diamondbacks) |
| Kurt Suzuki (Atlanta Braves) | Rick Porcello (Boston Red Sox) | Jim Johnson (Atlanta Braves) | Jason Grilli (Atlanta Braves) | Craig Kimbrel (Atlanta Braves) |
| Chris Davis (Baltimore Orioles) | Jose Abreu (Chicago White Sox) | Adam Jones (Baltimore Orioles) | Brian Matusz (Baltimore Orioles) | Nick Markakis (Baltimore Orioles) |
| Brock Holt (Boston Red Sox) | Carlos Carrasco (Cleveland Indians) | Brock Holt (Boston Red Sox) | Brock Holt (Boston Red Sox) | Craig Beslow (Boston Red Sox) |
| Jonathan Lester (Chicago Cubs) | Jose Cabrera (Detroit Tigers) | Anthony Rizzo (Chicago Cubs) | Anthony Rizzo (Chicago Cubs) | Anthony Rizzo (Chicago Cubs) |
| Jose Abreu (Chicago White Sox) | Jose Altuve (Houston Astros) | Jose Abreu (Chicago White Sox) | David Robertson (Chicago White Sox) | Paul Konerko (Chicago White Sox) |
| Tucker Barnhart (Cincinnati Reds) | Andrew Butera (Kansas City Royals) | Michael Lorenzen (Cincinnati Reds) | J.J. Hoover (Cincinnati Reds) | Skip Schumacher (Cincinnati Reds) |
| Carlos Carrasco (Cleveland Indians) | Cameron Maybin (Los Angeles Angels) | Carlos Carrasco (Cleveland Indians) | Carlos Carrasco (Cleveland Indians) | Nick Swisher (Cleveland Indians) |
| Ian Desmond (Colorado Rockies) | Joe Mauer (Minnesota Twins) | Carlos Gonzalez (Colorado Rockies) | Kyle Kendrick (Colorado Rockies) | Michael Cuddyer (Colorado Rockies) |
| Michael Fulmer (Detroit Tigers) | Brett Gardner (New York Yankees) | Miguel Cabrera (Detroit Tigers) | Miguel Cabrera (Detroit Tigers) | Justin Verlander (Detroit Tigers) |
| Charlie Morton (Houston Astros) | Liam Hendricks (Oakland Athletics) | Lance McCullers (Houston Astros) | George Springer (Houston Astros) | Jason Castro (Houston Astros) |
| Danny Duffy (Kansas City Royals) | Robinson Cano (Seattle Mariners) | Eric Hosmer (Kansas City Royals) | Alex Gordon (Kansas City Royals) | Eric Hosmer (Kansas City Royals) |
| Andrew Heaney (Los Angeles Angels) | Evan Longoria (Tampa Bay Rays) | Andrew Heaney (Los Angeles Angels) | Hector Santiago (Los Angeles Angels) | C.J. Wilson (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim) |
| Justin Turner (Los Angeles Dodgers) | Cole Hamels (Texas Rangers) | Adrian Gonzalez (Los Angeles Dodgers) | Adrian Gonzalez (Los Angeles Dodgers) | Clayton Kershaw (Los Angeles Dodgers) |
| Martin Prado (Miami Marlins) | Marcus Stroman (Toronto Blue Jays) | Giancarlo Stanton (Miami Marlins) | Dee Gordon (Miami Marlins) | Steve Cishek (Miami Marlins) |
| Corey Knebel (Milwaukee Brewers) | Paul Goldschmidt (Arizona Diamondbacks) | Ryan Braun (Milwaukee Brewers) | Jonathan Lucroy (Milwaukee Brewers) | Ryan Braun (Milwaukee Brewers) |
| Joe Mauer (Minnesota Twins) | Jason Motte (Atlanta Braves) | Joe Mauer (Minnesota Twins) | Torii Hunter (Minnesota Twins) | Glen Perkins (Minnesota Twins) |
| Steven Matz (New York Mets) | Anthony Rizzo (Chicago Cubs) | Curtis Granderson (New York Mets) | Curtis Granderson (New York Mets) | David Wright (New York Mets) |
| Carsten Sabathia (New York Yankees) | Scooter Gennett (Cincinnati Reds) | Brett Gardner (New York Yankees) | Mark Teixeira (New York Yankees) | CC Sabathia (New York Yankees) |
| Chad Pinder (Oakland Athletics) | Ian Desmond (Colorado Rockies) | Sean Doolittle (Oakland Athletics) | Stephen Vogt (Oakland Athletics) | Jed Lowrie (Oakland Athletics) |
| Rhys Hoskins (Philadelphia Phillies) | Justin Turner (Los Angeles Dodgers) | Ryan Howard (Philadelphia Phillies) | Ryan Howard (Philadelphia Phillies) | Jimmy Rollins (Philadelphia Phillies) |
| Jameson Taillon (Pittsburgh Pirates) | Dee Gordon (Miami Marlins) | Jared Hughes (Pittsburgh Pirates) | Andrew McCutchen (Pittsburgh Pirates) | Charlie Morton (Pittsburgh Pirates) |
| Yadier Molina (St. Louis Cardinals) | Matt Garza (Milwaukee Brewers) | Adam Wainwright (St. Louis Cardinals) | Adam Wainwright (St. Louis Cardinals) | Jason Motte (St. Louis Cardinals) |
| Clayton Richard (San Diego Padres) | T. J. Rivera (New York Mets) | Tyson Ross (San Diego Padres) | Andrew Cashner (San Diego Padres) | Ian Kennedy (San Diego Padres) |
| Buster Posey (San Francisco Giants) | Cameron Rupp (Philadelphia Phillies) | Jake Peavy (San Francisco Giants) | Javier Lopez (San Francisco Giants) | Sergio Romo (San Francisco Giants) |
| Nelson Cruz (Seattle Mariners) | Josh Harrsion (Pittsburgh Pirates) | Robinson Cano (Seattle Mariners) | Charlie Furbush (Seattle Mariners) | Felix Hernandez (Seattle Mariners) |
| Mallex Smith (Tampa Bay Rays) | Adam Wainwright (St. Louis Cardinals) | Chris Archer (Tampa Bay Rays) | Chris Archer (Tampa Bay Rays) | Evan Longoria (Tampa Bay Rays) |
| Cole Hamels (Texas Rangers) | Hunter Renfroe (San Diego Padres) | Cole Hamels (Texas Rangers) | Adrian Beltre (Texas Rangers) | Adrian Beltre (Texas Rangers) |
| Kevin Pillar (Toronto Blue Jays) | Buster Posey (San Francisco Giants) | Kevin Pillar (Toronto Blue Jays) | Jose Bautista (Toronto Blue Jays) | Todd Redmond (Toronto Blue Jays) |
| Ryan Zimmerman (Washington Nationals) | Ryan Zimmerman (Washington Nationals) | Ryan Zimmerman (Washington Nationals) | Denard Span (Washington Nationals) | Ian Desmond (Washington Nationals) |
| 2013 Nominations | 2012 Nominations | 2011 Nominations |
| Aaron Hill (Arizona Diamondbacks) | Willie Bloomquist (Arizona Diamondbacks) | Joe Saunders (Arizona Diamondbacks) |
| Tim Hudson (Atlanta Braves) | Tim Hudson (Atlanta Braves) | Tim Hudson (Atlanta Braves) |
| Adam Jones (Baltimore Orioles) | Jim Johnson (Baltimore Orioles) | Adam Jones (Baltimore Orioles) |
| Craig Beslow (Boston Red Sox) | Jon Lester (Boston Red Sox) | David Ortiz (Boston Red Sox) |
| Anthony Rizzo (Chicago Cubs) | David DeJesus (Chicago Cubs) | Ryan Dempster (Chicago Cubs) |
| Hector Santiago (Chicago White Sox) | Jake Peavy (Chicago White Sox) | Juan Pierre (Chicago White Sox) |
| Bronson Arroyo (Cincinnati Reds) | Todd Frazier (Cincinnati Reds) | Jay Bruce (Cincinnati Reds) |
| Justin Masterson (Cleveland Indians) | Jason Kipnis (Cleveland Indians) | Justin Masterson (Cleveland Indians) |
| Todd Helton (Colorado Rockies) | Michael Cuddyer (Colorado Rockies) | Troy Tulowitzki (Colorado Rockies) |
| Miguel Cabrera (Detroit Tigers) | Miguel Cabrera (Detroit Tigers) | Justin Verlander (Detroit Tigers) |
| Jose Altuve (Houston Astros) | Wesley Wright (Houston Astros) | Gaby Sanchez (Florida Marlins) |
| Billy Butler (Kansas City Royals) | Alex Gordon (Kansas City Royals) | Jason Bourgeois (Houston Astros) |
| Jered Weaver (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim) | C.J. Wilson (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim) | Billy Butler (Kansas City Royals) |
| Adrian Gonzalez (Los Angeles Dodgers) | Clayton Kershaw (Los Angeles Dodgers) | Torii Hunter (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim) |
| Logan Morrison (Miami Marlins) | Logan Morrison (Miami Marlins) | Clayton Kershaw (Los Angeles Dodgers) |
| Jonathan Lucroy (Milwaukee Brewers) | Rickie Weeks (Milwaukee Brewers) | LaTroy Hawkins (Milwaukee Brewers) |
| Justin Morneau (Minnesota Twins) | Justin Morneau (Minnesota Twins) | Michael Cuddyer (Minnesota Twins) |
| David Wright (New York Mets) | Johan Santana (New York Mets) | Michael Pelfrey (New York Mets) |
| David Robertson (New York Yankees) | Mark Teixeira (New York Yankees) | CC Sabathia (New York Yankees) |
| Sean Doolittle (Oakland Athletics) | Brandon McCarthy (Oakland Athletics) | Josh Willingham (Oakland Athletics) |
| Chase Utley (Philadelphia Phillies) | Jimmy Rollins (Philadelphia Phillies) | Ryan Howard (Philadelphia Phillies) |
| Andrew McCutchen (Pittsburgh Pirates) | Chris Resop (Pittsburgh Pirates) | Jeff Karstens (Pittsburgh Pirates) |
| Carlos Beltran (St. Louis Cardinals) | Matt Holliday (St. Louis Cardinals) | Albert Pujols (St. Louis Cardinals) |
| Mark Kotsay (San Diego Padres) | Luke Gregerson (San Diego Padres) | Orlando Hudson (San Diego Padres) |
| Barry Zito (San Francisco Giants) | Matt Cain (San Francisco Giants) | Jeremy Affeldt (San Francisco Giants) |
| Raul Ibanez (Seattle Mariners) | Felix Hernandez (Seattle Mariners) | Felix Hernandez (Seattle Mariners) |
| David Price (Tampa Bay Rays) | David Price (Tampa Bay Rays) | James Shields (Tampa Bay Rays) |
| Ian Kinsler (Texas Rangers) | Michael Young (Texas Rangers) | Michael Young (Texas Rangers) |
| J.P. Arencibia (Toronto Blue Jays) | Ricky Romero (Toronto Blue Jays) | Ricky Romero (Toronto Blue Jays) |
| Ryan Zimmerman (Washington Nationals) | Ryan Zimmerman (Washington Nationals) | Ian Desmond (Washington Nationals) |
FAQs
A. Justin Turner of the Los Angeles Dodgers won the Roberto Clemente Award in 2022.
A. 52 players have won the Roberto Clemente Award till now.
A. Phil Niekro is the first pitcher to win the Award in 1980.
A. St. Louis Cardinals won the award the most with 6 times.
A. The New York Yankees have won the Roberto Clemente Award 3 times.
A. The Commissioner’s Award of 1971 was renamed to the Roberto Clemente Award after the death of MLB Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente in 1973.
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