Pirates, Marlins to Play Two-Game Series in Puerto Rico in 2016
The Pittsburgh Pirates, the franchise of the late Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente, will meet the Miami Marlins in a two-game series at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico on May 30th-31st, 2016, Baseball Commissioner Robert D. Manfred, Jr. announced today during the quarterly owners meetings. The latter date of the series will also feature the celebration of Major League Baseball's league-wide Roberto Clemente Day.
The two-game set, which will be counted as Marlins home games, will mark the first regular season games played in Puerto Rico since the Marlins and the New York Mets held a three-game set at the historic ballpark in June 2010. MLB also held regular season games in San Juan in 2001, when the Texas Rangers and the Toronto Blue Jays opened the regular season, and in 2003 and 2004, when the Montreal Expos played a portion of their home schedule at Hiram Bithorn Stadium.
In honor of the Puerto Rico native Clemente, the observance of Roberto Clemente Day will be held on May 31st, 2016 in conjunction with the game in San Juan. MLB will announce the names of the 30 Club nominees for the 2016 Roberto Clemente Award, which recognizes a Major League player who best represents the game of baseball through positive contributions on and off the field, including sportsmanship and community involvement. Each Club annually nominates one player to be considered for the Roberto Clemente Award in an effort to pay tribute to Clemente's achievements and character by recognizing current players who truly understand the value of helping others. This year's Clemente Award winner was Pirates five-time All-Star outfielder Andrew McCutchen.
The 2016 celebration will mark the 15th annual Roberto Clemente Day, which was established by MLB to honor Clemente's legacy and to officially acknowledge local Club nominees of the Roberto Clemente Award.
MB Sports will once again serve as MLB's partners on the 2016 games in Puerto Rico.