2014 Honorary Bat Girl contest winners will be recognized Sunday for "Going To Bat Against Breast Cancer"

CINCINNATI (May 6, 2014) - Major League Baseball has announced the 31 winners of the 2014 Honorary Bat Girl Contest that recognizes baseball fans who have been affected by breast cancer and demonstrate a commitment to eradicating the disease. 

The winners for the Cincinnati Reds are Mike Shroder and Patty Stump of Mason, who will be recognized during on-field pregame ceremonies Sunday, May 11 (Reds vs. Colorado Rockies, 1:10 p.m.) at Great American Ball Park. They will receive complimentary game tickets for their family, commemorative Reds jerseys and pink wrist bands.

Mike and Patty were nominated by Josie Shuler, the winner of the 2013 Honorary Bat Girl contest. Here is an excerpt from the winning submission to HonoraryBatGirl.com:

Mike and Patty are both breast cancer survivors, a rarity in the medical world according to the UC Cancer Institute and American Cancer Society. In 2006, Mike was diagnosed with breast cancer and beat it. Then a year and a half later, Patti received a breast cancer diagnosis. After four years cancer free, Patty was diagnosed with cancer once again, but she fought it. Mike and Patty both continue to fight the disease through fundraising and volunteerism for Susan G. Komen Foundation.

Fans from across the country and Canada shared inspirational stories that provide hope and motivation in the fight against breast cancer, as well as the reasons they or their nominees should represent their favorite team.

The Honorary Bat Girl winners were selected by fan votes on HonoraryBatGirl.com along with feedback from a Guest Judging Panel that included Evan Longoria of the Tampa Bay Rays, Freddie Freeman of the Atlanta Braves, Pablo Sandoval of the San Francisco Giants, country music superstar and Atlanta Braves fan Jason Aldean, and Sam Ryan, MLB Network host and reporter.

Players and on-field personnel will wear the symbolic pink ribbon on their uniforms along with pink wrist bands. Commemorative base jewels and dugout lineup cards will also be pink. Games will use a pink stitched Rawlings baseball, the official ball of MLB, as the official game day baseball. Numerous MLB players will use pink bats and pink Louisville Slugger bats, the Official Bat of Major League Baseball, will be stamped with the MLB breast cancer awareness logo. Many of the game-used Louisville Slugger pink bats from Mother's Day games that have been authenticated by MLB will be auctioned exclusively on MLB.com to benefit the fight against breast cancer.

The Honorary Bat Girl program was introduced in 2009 to raise additional awareness and support for the annual "Going to Bat Against Breast Cancer" initiative celebrated on Mother's Day. In five years, thousands of unique testimonials have been submitted and more than 4 million fan votes have been cast. Going to Bat Against Breast Cancer is a Major League Baseball initiative supported by its charitable partners Stand Up To Cancer and Susan G. Komen. This initiative raises awareness about the breast cancer cause, while also raising funds to support breast cancer research.