Jason Castro recognized as Astros nominee for the 2014 Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet

Major League Baseball and Chevrolet, the official vehicle of MLB, today announced that Nick Swisher was named the Cleveland Indians 2014 nominee for the prestigious Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet. Swisher 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.

Each Club nominates one player to be considered for the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet in an effort to pay tribute to Clemente's achievements and character by recognizing current players who truly understand the value of helping others. Wednesday, September 17^th marks the thirteenth 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 and to honor Clemente's legacy. The 15-time MLB All-Star and Hall of Famer died in a plane crash on New Year's Eve 1972 while attempting to deliver supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua. 

Jason and his wife Maris, both graduates of Stanford University, launched their multifaceted initiative, "Castro's Kids" program in 2013. This program provides incentives to encourage students to embrace literacy. Together, they donate their time to make school library visits, host school children at the ballpark and hold book drives collecting new and gently used books for school libraries in the Houston Independent School District.

Jason also supports the Astros Foundation's cornerstone programs - the Community Leaders program, Astros Urban Youth Academy (UYA) and the Astros RBI Program. The Astros Community Leaders program is investing $18 million in city-owned public youth baseball and softball fields in disadvantaged areas of Houston over the course of the next five years. Started by Jim Crane, the Community Leaders program is run by the Astros Foundation, the official team charity, and is a collaboration with the City of Houston Parks and Recreation Department and corporate partners. The Astros Urban Youth Academy manages the Astros RBI Program and as well as provides free baseball and softball instruction, life skills training and academic support to Houston youth, with a focus on serving inner-city and at-risk children and teens.

Jason Castro has spent time with local Little Leaguers at Community Leaders field openings and has also spent time teaching baseball fundamentals at the Astros Urban Youth Academy. Earlier this season, Castro also supported the Astros Minute Maid Grand Slam For Youth Baseball Scholarship Program by recording a PSA that was featured in high schools in the Houston Independent School District reaching thousands of graduating seniors. Jason also supported the MLBPA Action Team/Volunteers of America.

"I'm honored to represent the Astros as the nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award," said Astros 2013 All-Star catcher Jason Castro. "Creating better opportunities for the youth in our community, whether it's through the Castro's Kids program or the Astros Urban Youth Academy, RBI or Community Leaders programs, is very important to my wife Maris and me. A big thank you to MLB and the Astros for nominating me for this prestigious award." 

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

+ Member of the Baseball Hall of Fame

** Originally known as the Commissioner's Award (prior to 1973)

Fans are encouraged to participate in the process of selecting the national Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet recipient by visiting ChevyBaseball.com, which is powered by MLB Advanced Media, to vote for one of the 30 Club nominees. Voting ends on Sunday, October 6^th and participating fans will be automatically registered for a chance to win a trip to the 2014 World Series, where the national winner of the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet will be announced.

The winner of the fan vote will receive one vote among those cast by the selection panel of dignitaries, which includes Baseball Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig; MLB Chief Operating Officer Rob Manfred; MLB Goodwill Ambassador and wife of Roberto Clemente, Vera Clemente; and representatives from Chevrolet, MLB Network, MLB.com, ESPN, FOX Sports and TBS, among others. 

Clubs playing at home on September 17^th will recognize their local nominees as part of Roberto Clemente Day ceremonies, while visiting Clubs 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.