Royals Catcher Salvy Wins MLB’s Greatest Individual Award

Royals Catcher and Captain Salvador Perez has been named the recipient of Major League Baseball's most prestigious individual player honor, the 2024 Roberto Clemente Award.

Major League Baseball says the Royals nominated Perez for his extraordinary efforts to build healthy and active communities in his native Valencia, Venezuela, his baseball home of Kansas City, and beyond. The Roberto Clemente Award is the annual recognition of a Major Leage player who best represents the game of Baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy, and positive contributions on and off the field.

Perez was selected from a list of 30 club nominees by a distinguished panel that included Major League Baseball Commissioner Manfred, Roberto Clemente's children, Enrique, Luis, and Roberto Jr., former players, and journalists from MLB-affiliated network and media partners.

During the season, Perez was recognized as a nominee on Roberto Clemente Day, held on September 15 throughout Major Leage Baseball.

Perez, the fourth captain in Royals history, World Series MVP, and nine-time All-Star, has made the following humanitarian contributions, creating opportunities and better outcomes for the less fortunate in the following ways:

• In Venezuela, each winter, Perez and his family distribute bags of food and kitchen supplies to upwards of 2,000 homes in the neediest parts of his hometown, Valencia. Over the last decade, he has directly impacted over 10,000 families who have received much-needed relief.
• He has paid for dozens of surgeries for kids with cleft lips, annually gives more than 1,000 toys to children's hospitals, and supports police officers with car repairs, computers, office renovations, and more.
• Perez regularly travels to Columbia to assist the Carlos Fortuna Foundation in helping adults be their best parents.
• In the U.S., Perez has partnered with organizations fighting against ALS, most notably Sarah's Soldiers, raising money and awareness to find a cure. He also works with Braden's Hope for Childhood Cancer, which has come to count on Salvy's generous spirit for dozens of events, often providing once-in-a-lifetime experiences for terminally ill kids.
• Perez owns a youth league in Valencia, where hundreds of kids learn to love the game. Perez provides well-kept fields and professional coaches. Players are given bags with baseball equipment, and financial support is provided for their families. Perez also personally speaks to each kid about the dangers of drugs, the importance of education, and other critical lessons for successful lives.
• In Kansas City, Perez made a $1 million foundational donation to the Kansas City Urban Youth Academy, one of MLB's 11 youth academies. This academy empowers Kansas City's urban youth through baseball and softball, as well as academic and social opportunities to become leaders of tomorrow.
• Earlier this year, Perez hosted over 100 kids from Kansas City's urban core for a baseball clinic and inspirational conversation about education and health. He provided funding for each kid to go home with a backpack filled with school supplies for the upcoming year.

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Congratulations to Salvador Perez for thrilling Kansas City Royals fans each season and for making a difference in his hometown and baseball town!