Yankees' Aaron Judge named 2023 Roberto Clemente Award winner
Major League Baseball announced on Monday evening that Yankees slugger Aaron Judge has been named the winner of the 2023 Roberto Clemente Award.
Originally called the Commissioner's Award, the honor -- which was renamed for Clemente in 1973 -- is given annually to "the player who best represents the game of Baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy and positive contributions, both on and off the field."
Each team nominated one player from their own organization, and Judge was selected from the 30 nominees.
"This is amazing. Just being a nominee is an incredible honor that a lot of players look forward to, now being a Robert Clemente Award winner, it's tough to describe," the star outfielder said Monday night. "It's definitely a moment I won't forget, I'm truly blessed."
Judge is the fourth Yankee ever to win the award, with Derek Jeter in 2009 being the most recent. Ron Guidry won the award in 1984, and Don Baylor took it home the following season in 1985.
Judge has been very active in the community since becoming a pro, including establishing his All Rise Foundation in 2018. He’s also given back to the youth in the Bronx and his hometown community of Fresno County, Calif., among other charitable efforts.
"We can sit here and talk about the stats, but he [Clemente] was a generational talent off the field with how he touched the lives of the youth and inspired this next generation of ballplayers," he said. "He grew the game and that's something I want to continue to do, this is just the beginning. I'm looking forward to helping more kids along the way."
