Today, we celebrate the life and legacy of one of the greatest to ever play the game of baseball in Pittsburgh Pirates legend Roberto Clemente.
Clemente was well known for being one of the best hitters in the business.
But beyond that, he was a humanitarian and a very charitable man off the field.
His efforts did not go unnoticed over his legendary career.
Clemente is also one of five Puerto Rican-born players to win a Most Valuable Player Award, in the same company as players such as Orlando Cepeda, Willie Hernandez, Ivan Rodriguez, and Juan Gonzalez.
Clemente won the NL MVP Award back in 1966, posting an 8.2 WAR and hitting .317 with 29 home runs, 119 RBI, a .536 slugging percentage, and a .360 on-base percentage.
Roberto Clemente led the charge for Puerto Rican-born MVPs. pic.twitter.com/mZLbHUc748
— MLB Stats (@MLBStats) September 15, 2022
What Clemente Meant To Baseball
These are some pretty impressive numbers from Clemente.
He was truly one of the greatest players to ever play the game of baseball.
His hitting was unparalleled by any during his time.
He’s also in some historic company with some great Puerto Rican-born ballplayers.
Today though, is all about him and what he meant to everybody around our great game.
His humanitarian efforts never go unnoticed.
In fact, that’s probably what people remember best about him.
But his talent on the field was something worth taking note of as well.
He might just be the greatest player to ever wear the Pirates uniform.
Here, we have one of the most well-respected ballplayers of all time.
His ability to balance being a Hall-of-Fame caliber player with his charitable work was just as impressive.
Soon, we’ll know who ultimately wins the Roberto Clemente Award this year.
But for now, we honor one of the greatest to ever play the game.
