Domonic Brown named Phillies' nominee for 2013 Hank Aaron Award

Major League Baseball and MLB Advanced Media announced that Domonic Brown was named the Phillies' nominee for the 2013 Hank Aaron Award.

Fans can vote exclusively online at MLB.com and the 30 Club sites. For the fourth straight year, a special panel of Hall of Fame players led by Hank Aaron will join fans in voting for the award, which is officially sanctioned by Major League Baseball and has recognized the most outstanding offensive performer in each League since it was established in 1999.

Domonic Brown was an offensive catalyst for the Phillies this season as he led the team in home runs (27), RBI (83) and slugging percentage (.494). Selected to his first career All-Star team, Brown's season was highlighted by a stellar May in which he batted .303 with four doubles, a triple, 12 home runs, 25 RBI and a .688 slugging percentage as he was named the National League Player of the Month. Brown also took home NL Player of the Week honors in back-to-back weeks (5/20-26 & 5/27-6/2). The Zephyrhills, Florida native was the first Phillie to hit 12 home runs in a month since Ryan Howard had 14 in August of 2006. At season's end the Philadelphia Chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America presented Brown with the Mike Schmidt Award, given annually to the team's Most Valuable Player.

The Hall of Fame panel led by Aaron includes some of the greatest offensive players of all-time -Roberto Alomar, Johnny Bench, Tony Gwynn, Paul Molitor, Eddie Murray and Robin Yount. These Hall of Famers - who combined for 17,629 hits, 8,278 RBI and 1,723 home runs - have all been personally selected by Hank Aaron to lend their expertise to select the best offensive performer in each League. 

Through October 10, fans will have the opportunity to select one American League and one National League winner from a list comprising of one finalist per Club. The winners of the 2013 Hank Aaron Award will be announced during the 2013 World Series.

"Domonic has really grown both as a player on the field and as a presence within our clubhouse," said Ruben Amaro Jr., Phillies Senior Vice President & General Manager. "His effectiveness at the plate was accentuated this year by his well-deserved selection in the All-Star game. It's wonderful to see a player rewarded for his hard work and preparation in the offseason."

"It is a great honor that Major League Baseball recognizes the most outstanding offensive performer in each League with an award in my name," said Hank Aaron. "The game is full of so many talented players today that I am thankful my fellow Hall of Famers and the fans assist in selecting the much deserving winners."

The finalists for the 2013 Hank Aaron Award are:

American League

Baltimore Orioles - Chris Davis

Boston Red Sox - David Ortiz

Chicago White Sox - Alexei Ramirez

Cleveland Indians - Jason Kipnis

Detroit Tigers - Miguel Cabrera

Houston Astros - Jason Castro

Kansas City Royals - Eric Hosmer

LA Angels of Anaheim - Mike Trout

Minnesota Twins - Joe Mauer

New York Yankees - Robinson Cano

Oakland Athletics - Josh Donaldson

Seattle Mariners - Kendrys Morales

Tampa Bay Rays - Evan Longoria

Texas Rangers - Adrian Beltre

Toronto Blue Jays - Edwin Encarnacion

National League

Arizona Diamondbacks - Paul Goldschmidt

Atlanta Braves - Freddie Freeman

Chicago Cubs - Nate Schierholtz

Cincinnati Reds - Jay Bruce

Colorado Rockies - Michael Cuddyer

Los Angeles Dodgers - Hanley Ramirez

Miami Marlins - Giancarlo Stanton

Milwaukee Brewers - Carlos Gomez

New York Mets - David Wright

Philadelphia Phillies - Domonic Brown

Pittsburgh Pirates - Andrew McCutchen

St. Louis Cardinals - Matt Carpenter

San Diego Padres - Will Venable

San Francisco Giants - Hunter Pence

Washington Nationals - Jayson Werth

Past winners of the Hank Aaron Award include: Miguel Cabrera and Buster Posey (2012), Jose Bautista and Matt Kemp (2011), Bautista and Joey Votto (2010); Derek Jeter and Albert Pujols (2009); Aramis Ramirez and Kevin Youkilis (2008); Alex Rodriguez and Prince Fielder (2007); Jeter and Ryan Howard (2006); David Ortiz and Andruw Jones (2005); Manny Ramirez and Barry Bonds (2004); Rodriguez and Pujols (2003); Rodriguez and Bonds (2001-02); Carlos Delgado and Todd Helton (2000) and Manny Ramirez and Sammy Sosa (1999).

The Hank Aaron Award was introduced in 1999 to honor the 25^th Anniversary of Aaron breaking Babe Ruth's all-time home run record, and, at that time, was the first major award introduced by Major League Baseball in more than 25 years.