ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor has won the Roberto Clemente Award from Major League Baseball for his humanitarian work.
Lindor was to receive the award before Game 3 of the World Series on Monday night.
A five-time All-Star, Lindor became the fifth recipient of Puerto Rican descent to receive the award after Edgar Martinez (2004), Carlos Delgado (2006), Carlos Beltrán (2013) and Yadier Molina (2018).
Lindor and his
wife Katia have worked with Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals; the SEEN Foundation, a disability advocacy group; Special Olympics Florida; and Boys & Girls Clubs of America.
He donated to relief efforts in Puerto Rico after Hurricanes Maria and Fiona, restoring athletic facilities in his hometown of Caguas, and donated more than $1 million to build Lindor Hall at the Montverde Academy, a school he graduated from in Monteverde, Florida.
Lindor launched a leadership development initiative for students in the sports medicine program at Bayside High School in New York; and funded backpacks and school supplies in Queens, the New York City borough where the Mets' Citi Field is located.
Clemente was a 15-time All-Star from Puerto Rico who was killed in a plane crash on New Year’s Eve 1972 while attempting to deliver supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua. The award is given annually to a major league player who represents the sport through character, community involvement, philanthropy and positive contributions on and off the field.
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