NEW YORK — Longtime St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright has won the Roberto Clemente Award, given annually by Major League Baseball for community involvement and philanthropy.
Wainwright’s Big League Impact foundation and recording artist Garth Brooks’ Teammates for Kids Foundation teamed for a Home Plate Project with Texas pitcher Kyle Gibson, and raised money from more than 150 big leaguers that led to the donation of about $5.8 million donated to 94 charities. The effort has provided more than 4 million 8 to prevent childhood hunger during the coronavirus pandemic and nearly eight million meals in all.
Wainwright also has built Haiti’s Ferrier Village Secondary School, which opened for 2019-20 school year while partnering with Water Mission to build a clean water system for the community; funded the construction of a clean water system servicing more than 15,000 people in Honduras; purchased 11 acres in Ethiopia for the site of a clinic and a dairy and crop farm; partnered with Crisis Aid International to feed children in Africa; and aided sex trafficking victims in the St. Louis area. He works with Crisis Aid to provide weekly meals for 3,000 families, including 200 families annually in South St. Louis.
A 39-year-old right-hander, Wainwright is a free agent after spending all 15 of his big league seasons with the Cardinals. He is a three-time All-Star with a 167-98 record and 3.38 ERA.
Previous winners on the Cardinals include Lou Brock (1975). Ozzie Smith (1995), Albert Pujols (2008), Carlos Beltran (2013) and Yadier Molina (2018).
The award usually is announced during the World Series but was delayed this year until Monday because of the pandemic.