During the World Series, MLB awards one player each year with the Roberto Clemente Award, an award designed to honor community excellence as well as the Pirate legend whom it is named after. Thirty players — one for each team — are nominated for it but who was the winner of the 2023 Roberto Clemente Award? Here’s an answer to that question.
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The recipient of the Roberto Clemente Award in 2023
Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge was the winner of the 2023 Roberto Clemente Award. The Yankees star was given the award in October 2023 during the World Series. He became the first player from the Bronx Bombers to win the award since 2009.
That season, now-Baseball Hall of Famer Derek Jeter won the award.
The Roberto Clemente Award is given annually to the player who demonstrated Clemente’s “commitment to community and understanding the value of helping others.”
The award was first handed out in 1971 when Willie Mays of the Giants won it. It was originally called the Commissioner’s Award before it was re-named in Clemente’s honor in 1973.
Judge joins the likes of his Yankee teammate Anthony Rizzo, one of his former teammates Andrew McCutchen, Carlos Carrasco, and Clayton Kershaw as active players who have won the award.
As mentioned previously, 30 players were nominated for the award, one from each team. The announcement of the Roberto Clemente Award winner also kicks off the 2023 MLB award season, which will start in earnest in early November after the conclusion of the World Series.
Then-Dodgers infielder Justin Turner won the Roberto Clemente Award in 2022.