KANSAS CITY, Mo.—Catcher and Captain of the Kansas City Royals Salvador Perez has been named the 2024 recipient of Baseball’s most prestigious individual player honor, the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Capital One. Perez was nominated by the Royals for his extraordinary efforts to build healthy and active communities in his native Valencia, Venezuela, his baseball home of Kansas City, Mo. and beyond.
Perez, the first member of the Royals to receive the honor, will be formally presented with the Roberto Clemente Award during a pregame press conference at Yankee Stadium before tonight’s Game Three of the World Series presented by Capital One.
Perez, the fourth captain in Royals history, a nine-time All-Star, five-time Rawlings Gold Glove Award winner and World Series MVP, has made meaningful humanitarian contributions, creating opportunities and better outcomes for the less fortunate in the following ways:
- Each winter in Venezuela, Perez and his family distribute bags of food and kitchen supplies to upwards of 2,000 homes in the neediest parts of his hometown of Valencia. He knocks on doors and often goes to the pharmacy for those who need medicine. Over the last decade, he has directly impacted over 10,000 families who have received much-needed relief.
- Perez has paid for dozens of surgeries for kids with cleft lips, annually gives more than 1,000 toys to children’s hospitals, and supports police officers with car repairs, computers, office renovations, and more.
- Perez regularly travels to Colombia to assist the Carlos Fortuna Foundation in helping adults be the best parents they can be. During the COVID-19 shutdown, Colombia set strict travel guidelines. Determined, Perez crossed the border on foot, at significant personal risk, to be there for the families who counted on him.
- In the U.S., Perez has partnered with organizations fighting against ALS, most notably Sarah’s Soldiers, raising money and awareness to find a cure. He also works with Braden’s Hope for Childhood Cancer, which has come to count on Salvy’s generous spirit for dozens of events, often providing once-in-a-lifetime experiences for terminally ill kids.
- Perez has regularly provided support and baseball experiences for teachers and many families of fallen or wounded police officers.
- Perez owns a youth league in Valencia, where hundreds of kids learn to love the game. Perez provides well-kept fields and professional coaches. At the beginning of each season, the kids are given bags with spikes, running shoes, jerseys, gloves, and financial support for their families. Beyond baseball, Perez also takes time to speak to each kid about the dangers of drugs, the importance of education, and other critical lessons for successful lives.
- In Kansas City, Perez made a $1 million foundational donation to the Kansas City Urban Youth Academy, one of MLB’s 11 youth academies. This academy empowers Kansas City’s urban youth through baseball and softball, as well as academic and social opportunities, to become the leaders of tomorrow. Perez’s donation matched the largest in the UYA’s history, helping it welcome over 60,000 youth since its inception in 2018.
- Earlier this summer, Perez hosted over one hundred kids from Kansas City’s urban core for a baseball clinic and inspirational conversation about education and health. He provided funding for each kid to go home with a backpack filled with school supplies for the upcoming year.
The Roberto Clemente Award presented by Capital One is the annual recognition of a Major League player who best represents the game of Baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy, and positive contributions, both on and off the field. The concept of honoring Major League players for their philanthropic work was created in 1971 as the “Commissioner’s Award.” It was renamed to the “Roberto Clemente Award” in 1973 to honor 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.