Vote for Gary's Own LaTROY HAWKINS #BREWERS NOMINEE FOR THE 2011 ROBERTO CLEMENTE AWARD {Click, Vote, Share}

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                   September 13, 2011

2011 ROBERTO CLEMENTE AWARD PRESENTED BY CHEVROLET

Beginning on Roberto Clemente Day, Fans Can Vote for the National Award Recipient on ChevyBaseball.com/Clemente And Register for a Chance to Win a Trip to 2011 World Series

Major League Baseball and Chevrolet, the official vehicle of Major League Baseball, today announced that LaTroy Hawkins was named the Brewers 2011 nominee for the prestigious Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet. Hawkins 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. Tomorrow will mark the tenth 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.

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. It is named for the 12-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. 

Hawkins contributed $50,000 this season to Brewers Community Foundation in support of activities and programs targeted to youth recreation, scholarships and education throughout Wisconsin.  His financial support provided assistance to the RBI League in Milwaukee, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the Susan G. Komen Foundation and Sharp Literacy, Inc. 

In support of the Milwaukee Mayor’s Fatherhood Initiative to bring together the past, present and future by raising awareness about the importance of involved, responsible and committed fathers, Hawkins hosted a group of fathers and sons for a trip to St. Louis to watch the Brewers vs. Cardinals game.

Last month, the Brewers reliever provided financial support for the Team Smile dental clinic that took place at Miller Park, which provided over 200 children free dental health education, screening and treatment.  During the off-season, he assists a non-profit organization in his hometown, in Fort Wayne, IN, called Lifeline, dedicated to helping at-risk children and families. 

On Wednesday, September 14, LaTroy will be recognized as the Brewers 2011 Roberto Clemente Nominee and Chevrolet representative Judith Boll will present Milwaukee Fatherhood Initiative with a donation made possible by Chevrolet.

          “LaTroy’s commitment to the Milwaukee community has been extraordinary and very sincere,” said Brewers Executive Vice President, General Manager Doug Melvin.  “He has been a leader in the clubhouse and in the community for this team.”

          “I have always made it a priority to contribute to the community wherever I have been in my career,” said Hawkins.  “The organizations I have worked with are ones I truly care about and I appreciate the honor of named in memory of someone as great as Roberto Clemente.”

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

* Member of Baseball Hall of Fame

Beginning on Roberto Clemente Day, fans are encouraged to participate in the process of selecting the national award recipient by visiting www.chevybaseball.com/clemente, a site powered by MLB.com and created specifically for the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet platform, to vote for one of the 30 Club nominees. Voting ends on October 9, and participating fans will be automatically registered for a chance to win a trip to the 2011 World Series, where the national winner of the Roberto Clemente Award presented by Chevrolet will be announced.

The winner of the fan poll will receive one vote among those cast by the selection panel, which includes Commissioner Selig; Vera Clemente, MLB Goodwill Ambassador and wife of the late Hall of Famer; Baseball Hall of Famer, TBS analyst and former Roberto Clemente Award winner Cal Ripken Jr.; MLB Network analyst, TBS broadcaster and former Roberto Clemente Award winner John Smoltz; MLB Network analysts and former Roberto Clemente Award winners Al Leiter and Harold Reynolds; and MLB.com senior correspondent Hal Bodley.

All Clubs playing at home on September 14 will acknowledge their local nominees as part of Roberto Clemente Day ceremonies, while visiting Clubs 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.

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Contact: Milwaukee Brewers Media Relations, 414-902-4500

Promotion Period: Sweepstakes begins at 12:00:01PM Eastern Time ("ET") on 9/13/11 and ends at 11:59:59PM ET on 10/9/11 ("Promotion Period"). For the purposes of this Sweepstakes, a day is defined as the 24-hour period beginning at 12:00:01AM ET and ending at 11:59:59PM ET with the exception of 9/13/11, which will begin at 12:00:01PM ET. Sweepstakes consists of one (1) random Grand Prize drawing (the "Grand Prize Drawing") and one (1) random Community Equipment Prize drawing (the "Community Equipment Prize Drawing").