Major League Baseball and Chevrolet, the official vehicle of Major League Baseball, today announced that David Price was named the Rays' 2012 nominee for the prestigious Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet. Today marks the eleventh annual Roberto Clemente Day, which was established by Major League Baseball to honor Clemente's legacy and to officially recognize local Club nominees of the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet. Price is one of the 30 Club finalists for the annual award, which 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.

The Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet pays tribute to Clemente's achievements and character by recognizing current players who truly understand the value of helping others. The Award is named for the 15-time MLB All-Star and Hall of Famer who died in a plane crash on New Year's Eve 1972 while attempting to deliver supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.

In 2008 Price started his own charitable foundation. Project One Four was founded by David to support programs and organizations that provide opportunities for youth to learn life skills in a safe and supportive environment. Project One Four supports programs and charities in the local Tampa Bay area as well as in his hometown of Nashville, Tenn. David holds an annual golf tournament, bowling event, and banquet to help raise the needed funds. Last year alone Project One Four donated backpacks, school supplies and laptops to children in need. He also made monetary donations to two different Boys and Girls Club locations totaling more than $13,000. For more information on Project One Four please visit www.project14.org.


As part of the Rays South St. Petersburg Neighborhood initiative, Price helped create the Dugout Club program in 2010 and has since recruited other players to expand the program. He sponsors two recreation centers in South St. Petersburg each summer and serves as a role model, teaching the kids about staying healthy, positive, involved and smart. He has provided T-shirts to the centers each year along with a $2,000 check, the “angel fund” to help with additional expenses.


In April, David also sponsored “David Price Bowl For Kids’ Sake” bowling event in Tampa to benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters. During a month-long campaign, Price recruited fans to participate through his
twitter feed @DavidPrice14, raising more than $22,000 for the charity. David also volunteers and has donated approximately $10,000 to the Miracle League of St. Petersburg. The Miracle League provides kids with disabilities the opportunity to play outdoors in a safe, fun-filled environment.


Chevrolet will donate $7,500 to a charity of Price’s choice during a pregame ceremony on Tuesday, September 18.

The distinguished list of national Roberto Clemente Award recipients includes 13 members of the National Baseball Hall of Fame:

1971 - Willie Mays* 1985 - Don Baylor 1998 - Sammy Sosa
1972 - Brooks Robinson* 1986 - Garry Maddox 1999 - Tony Gwynn*
1973 - Al Kaline* 1987 - Rick Sutcliffe 2000 - Al Leiter
1974 - Willie Stargell* 1988 - Dale Murphy 2001 - Curt Schilling
1975 - Lou Brock* 1989 - Gary Carter* 2002 - Jim Thome
1976 - Pete Rose 1990 - Dave Stewart 2003 - Jamie Moyer
1977 - Rod Carew* 1991 - Harold Reynolds 2004 - Edgar Martinez
1978 - Greg Luzinski 1992 - Cal Ripken, Jr.* 2005 - John Smoltz
1979 - Andre Thornton 1993 - Barry Larkin 2006 - Carlos Delgado
1980 - Phil Niekro* 1994 - Dave Winfield* 2007 - Craig Biggio
1981 - Steve Garvey 1995 - Ozzie Smith* 2008 - Albert Pujols
1982 - Ken Singleton 1996 - Kirby Puckett* 2009 - Derek Jeter
1983 - Cecil Cooper 1997 - Eric Davis 2010 - Tim Wakefield
1984 - Ron Guidry   2011 - David Ortiz

*Member of Baseball Hall of Fame

Beginning today, fans are encouraged to participate in the process of selecting the award recipient by visiting MLB.com/ClementeAward to vote for one of the 30 Club nominees. Fans will be automatically registered for a chance to win a trip to the 2012 World Series, where the national winner of the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet will be announced. Voting ends at 11:59 p.m. ET on Sunday, October 14th, and the winner of the fan poll will receive one vote among those cast by a selection panel.

All Clubs playing at home today will recognize their local nominees as part of Roberto Clemente Day ceremonies, while each visiting Club 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.