Vogt nominated for prestigious Clemente Award

CHICAGO -- Catcher Stephen Vogt has been selected as the A's nominee for the 2015 Roberto Clemente Award, which recognizes a player who best represents the game of baseball through impactful contributions on and off the field.

"No shock," A's manager Bob Melvin said Monday. "He is definitely the guy for us. Another feather in his cap in a year where he's got a lot of feathers."

• Roberto Clemente Award nominees announced

Vogt, who earned his first All-Star nod this year, will be honored prior to a game at the Coliseum during the club's next homestand, which begins Sept. 21.

"I'm honored to be nominated," Vogt said. "I think the game of baseball allows us a platform to go out in the community and do better things than just play baseball. I think it's our duty, it's our job to go out and impact lives with the platform we've been given, and I know I've always been intent to work with any group of kids."

Vogt and his wife, Alyssa, are supporters of the School of Imagination in Dublin, Calif., where they've made multiple visits to work with special-needs children. He's also hosted them at the Coliseum on numerous occasions, bringing the children on the field during batting practice.

"They've blessed our lives just as much as I'm sure we've helped them," Vogt said. "We're just lucky we found such a good organization to work with.

"As a Major League baseball player, you have the responsibility to impact more lives than just your own. People look up to us, right or wrong, and I think we need to make sure we are enriching lives outside of baseball and making life count outside of baseball."

Beginning Wednesday, fans are encouraged to participate in the process of selecting the winner of the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet by visiting ChevyBaseball.com to vote for one of the 30 club nominees. Voting ends Oct. 9.

The concept of honoring players for their philanthropic work came about in 1971 as the Commissioner's Award, which was renamed the Roberto Clemente Award in 1973 in honor of the Hall of Famer and 15-time All-Star, who died in a plane crash on New Year's Eve 1972 while attempting to deliver supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.