The Roberto Clemente award is one of the awards in baseball that means a great deal for a player's character on and off the field. MLB.com describes the award as "presented annually to recognize a Major League player who best represents the game of baseball through positive contributions on and off the field, including sportsmanship and community involvement." According to Jake Kpalan of the Philadelphia Inquirer, long-time Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard will be the Phillies player nominated in 2015.
What motivated the nomination this season is unclear at this time, but Howard and his wife Krystle co-authored a children's book in the last year. The "Little Rhino" book addresses bullying and sportsmanship. Krystle Howard is a former elementary teacher and designed the book with Ryan Howard for students in first through fourth grades.
One team from each club is nominated annually, and there will be one player chosen as the winner, though last year Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins and White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko shared the award.
Three Phillies players have won the award since the award was intituted in 1971, then called the Commissioner's Award before being renamed for Clemente after his death. Former Phillies outfielder Greg Luzinski won the award in 1978, and outfielder Garry Maddox won the award in 1986 before Rollins was the third Phillie to take home the award in 2014.
Some prominent former Phillies also won the award as players on other teams: Pete Rose in 1976 with the Cincinnati Reds, Curt Schilling in 2001 with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Jim Thome in 2002 with the Cleveland Indians, and Jamie Moyer in 2003 with the Seattle Mariners.
