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Mark Teixeira named New York Yankees nominee for the 2012 Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet

Beginning today, Fans Can Vote for the National Award Recipient on MLB.com/ClementeAward and Register for a Chance to Win a Trip to the 2012 World Series

Major League Baseball and Chevrolet, the official vehicle of Major League Baseball, today announced that Mark Teixeira was named the New York Yankees 2012 nominee for the prestigious Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet. Today marks the eleventh annual Roberto Clemente Day, which was established by Major League Baseball to honor Clemente’s legacy and to officially recognize local Club nominees of the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet. Teixeira is one of the 30 Club finalists for the annual award, which recognizes a Major League Baseball player who best represents the game of baseball through positive contributions on and off the field, including sportsmanship and community involvement.

The Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet pays tribute to Clemente’s achievements and character by recognizing current players who truly understand the value of helping others. The Award is named for the 15-time MLB All-Star and Hall of Famer who died in a plane crash on New Year’s Eve 1972 while attempting to deliver supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.

A natural and avid philanthropist, Teixeira has been involved in charitable endeavors throughout his big-league career. In 2006, Mark and his wife, Leigh, established the Mark Teixeira Charitable Fund, an initiative that awarded several scholarships to students from multiple high schools in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Three years later in 2009, he served as a spokesman for the National Foundation for Cancer Research through the organization’s “Help Strike Out Sun Damage” program.

Teixeira has been an avid supporter of Harlem RBI, a nonprofit organization in East Harlem, New York, that provides more than 1,200 boys and girls, ages 5-22, with year-round academic, sports and enrichment programs. In 2011, he made a $1 million donation to Harlem RBI and has been calling on his fans to help raise additional funds through his Dream Team 25 campaign. The fundraising campaign is helping the organization build a 45-seat public charter school facility, a new community center, 87 units of low-income housing and a rebuilt public park in the Harlem community. All are designed to serve as a model for urban development.

In addition, Teixeira, who is the Co-Chair of the organization’s $20 million Capital Campaign and the Chair of the organization’s Home Run Leadership Council, works with Major League Baseball to connect with RBI programs nationally through in-stadium appearance with fellow Major League Baseball players and supports local RBI programs around the country.

The Yankees are scheduled to recognize Teixeira’s nomination for this year’s Clemente Award with an on-field ceremony scheduled to take place tonight, prior to their 7:05 p.m. game vs. the Toronto Blue Jays.

The distinguished list of past national Roberto Clemente Award recipients includes 14 members of the National Baseball Hall of Fame:

1971 - Willie Mays* 1985 - Don Baylor 1998 - Sammy Sosa
1972 - Brooks Robinson* 1986 - Garry Maddox 1999 - Tony Gwynn*
1973 - Al Kaline* 1987 - Rick Sutcliffe 2000 - Al Leiter
1974 - Willie Stargell* 1988 - Dale Murphy 2001 - Curt Schilling
1975 - Lou Brock* 1989 - Gary Carter* 2002 - Jim Thome
1976 - Pete Rose 1990 - Dave Stewart 2003 - Jamie Moyer
1977 - Rod Carew* 1991 - Harold Reynolds 2004 - Edgar Martinez
1978 - Greg Luzinski 1992 - Cal Ripken, Jr.* 2005 - John Smoltz
1979 - Andre Thornton 1993 - Barry Larkin 2006 - Carlos Delgado
1980 - Phil Niekro* 1994 - Dave Winfield* 2007 - Craig Biggio
1981 - Steve Garvey 1995 - Ozzie Smith* 2008 - Albert Pujols
1982 - Ken Singleton 1996 - Kirby Puckett* 2009 - Derek Jeter
1983 - Cecil Cooper 1997 - Eric Davis 2010 - Tim Wakefield
1984 - Ron Guidry   2011 - David Ortiz

* Member of the Baseball Hall of Fame

Beginning today, fans are encouraged to participate in the process of selecting the national award recipient by visiting MLB.com/ClementeAward to vote for one of the 30 Club nominees. Participating fans will be automatically registered for a chance to win a trip to the 2012 World Series, where the national winner of the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet will be announced. Voting ends at 11:59 p.m. ET on Sunday, October 14th, and the winner of the fan poll will receive one vote among those cast by a selection panel.

All Clubs playing at home today will recognize their local nominees as part of Roberto Clemente Day ceremonies, while each visiting Club will honor their nominees before another September home game. As part of the league-wide celebration, the Roberto Clemente Day logo will appear on the bases and the official dugout lineup cards.

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