Charlie Morton Named Pirates Nominee for the 2014 Roberto Clemente Award Presented by Chevrolet

Thirty MLB Players Will Be Recognized for Philanthropic Efforts To Help Celebrate the 13th Annual Roberto Clemente Day on September 17th

Beginning on Roberto Clemente Day, Fans Can Vote on ChevyBaseball.com for the National Winner and Register for a Chance to Win a Trip to the 2014 World Series

Major League Baseball and Chevrolet, the official vehicle of MLB, today announced that pitcher Charlie Morton was named the Pirates 2014 nominee for the prestigious Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet. The annual Award 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 13^th annual Roberto Clemente Day, which was established by Major League Baseball to officially acknowledge 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.

In 2011 Morton and his wife Cindy, partnered with Pirates Charities, to form "Morton's Military Initiative" to assist military servicemen and women and support military service organizations. At that time, Morton began working with Pirates Charities on several initiatives that included veteran service organizations such as Operation Troop Appreciation and the Wounded Warrior Project.

Charlie has hosted members of these and other similar groups to games at PNC Park during his time with the Pirates and most recently hosted a batting practice and picnic event for veterans and their families in Bradenton, Florida during Pirates Spring Training. This event hosted by Morton and in partnership with Pirates Charities and the Patterson Foundation's "Legacy of Valor" initiative, was for 15 local veteran members of Team Red, White and Blue and their families, and 15 local veteran members of Wounded Warrior Project and their families.

Operation Troop Appreciation (OTA) is a Pittsburgh-based non-profit organization whose mission is to build and sustain the morale and well-being of the military community, past and present, with the assurance that the American public supports and appreciates their selfless service and daily sacrifices. Morton's work with OTA includes "Adopt A Unit," in which he and his wife provided funds to allow OTA to supply "Wish Items" for deployed military units, focusing on those serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, and throughout the Middle East, intended to ease the burden of deployment.

Also Charlie has worked with the group to promote awareness in a series of public service announcements that were played in-park at PNC Park and on Pirates broadcasts. He has hosted members at PNC Park for numerous games and volunteered his time for events and initiatives.

"We are incredibly proud of Charlie and the way in which he represents the Pittsburgh Pirates," said Pirates President Frank Coonelly. "This award means a great deal to this organization and Charlie is a very deserving recipient."

The 30 Club nominees of the 2014 Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet feature seven 2014 MLB All-Stars (*=MLB All-Star):

• Arizona Diamondbacks - Paul Goldschmidt*
• Atlanta Braves - Craig Kimbrel*
• Baltimore Orioles - Nick Markakis
• Boston Red Sox - Craig Breslow
• Chicago Cubs - Anthony Rizzo*
• Chicago White Sox - Paul Konerko
• Cincinnati Reds - Skip Schumaker
• Cleveland Indians - Nick Swisher
• Colorado Rockies - Michael Cuddyer
• Detroit Tigers - Justin Verlander
• Houston Astros - Jason Castro
• Kansas City Royals - Eric Hosmer
• Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim - C.J. Wilson
• Los Angeles Dodgers - Clayton Kershaw*
• Miami Marlins - Steve Cishek
• Milwaukee Brewers - Ryan Braun
• Minnesota Twins - Glen Perkins*
• New York Mets - David Wright
• New York Yankees - CC Sabathia
• Oakland Athletics - Jed Lowrie
• Philadelphia Phillies - Jimmy Rollins
• Pittsburgh Pirates - Charlie Morton
• St. Louis Cardinals - Jason Motte
• San Diego Padres - Ian Kennedy
• San Francisco Giants - Sergio Romo
• Seattle Mariners - Felix Hernandez*
• Tampa Bay Rays - Evan Longoria
• Texas Rangers - Adrian Beltre*
• Toronto Blue Jays - Todd Redmond
• Washington Nationals - Ian Desmond

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; Hall of Fame Broadcaster and the "Spanish Voice of the Los Angeles Dodgers" Jaime Jarrin; MLB Network analysts and former Roberto Clemente Award winners Al Leiter, Harold Reynolds (also of FOX Sports) and John Smoltz (also of FOX Sports); ESPN analysts and former Roberto Clemente Award winners Rick Sutcliffe and Hall of Famer Barry Larkin; FOX Sports Broadcaster Joe Buck; TBS analysts Ron Darling (also of MLB Network) and Hall of Famer Dennis Eckersley; MLB.com senior correspondent Hal Bodley; a representative from Chevrolet; and 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.