Royals catcher Salvador Perez wins Roberto Clemente Award

Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez won the Roberto Clemente Award, Major League Baseball's prestigious honor given annually to the player whose humanitarian efforts exemplify his achievements off the field.

The 34-year-old, who spent all 13 years of his major league career with Kansas City, is the first Royals player to win the award and was recognized for his generosity not only in his adopted hometown but also in Valencia, Venezuela, vows Perez grew up in Colombia, where his posts honor a minor league pitcher who died of cancer.

“When we do something, we do it because it comes from the heart,” Perez said. “I don't like doing things because someone asks me to. When I sit with my mother and want to do something, we just do it. We don't have to post anything on social media. I don’t like it.” That. When I do it, I do it for my heart. I want to make people happy.

Perez, the Royals captain and one of the most popular athletes in Kansas City sports history, played on Roberto Clemente Day this year in Pittsburgh, where the Hall of Fame outfielder spent each of his 18 seasons. Perez later donated his catching equipment from that day to the Clemente Museum. Clemente, the Pirates' Hall of Fame outfielder, died in a plane crash while trying to bring aid to Nicaragua after a devastating earthquake in 1972. Clemente, valued for his charitable work throughout Latin America – including his native Puerto Rico – was 38 years old.

“I read a lot (about) Roberto Clemente. I know he was a great player, but off the field he was even better,” Perez said. “That’s what made him very special and made this award very special.”

Perez said he is most proud of his work in Venezuela, a country plagued by political instability and food insecurity. Together with his mother, Yilda Diaz, who raised him alone, Perez distributes food and kitchen utensils to nearly 2,000 homes near Valencia each year and has supported more than 10,000 families in the region. In recent years, a youth league that Perez owns has provided baseball to 220 children and offered free equipment and classes that promote education and safety.

“It all starts where you come from,” Perez said, “so when you make it to that level, you have the opportunity to help people.”

“Venezuela is also a part of my heart,” he continued. “This is the country that gives me opportunities. And I started playing baseball when I was 4 years old, so that means a lot to me. But politics and all that, it's kind of hard to talk about. Things happen for a reason.” I believe in God and believe that one day everything will work out for the better.

Venezuela's western neighbor Colombia also received support from Perez through the Carlos Fortuna Foundation. Fortuna, a pitcher from the Dominican Republic in the Royals organization, died of liver cancer in 2013 at age 22. Monica Ramirez, the Royals' education/ESL and Latin American initiatives coordinator, helped found the foundation to promote parent education, particularly in low-income Latin American countries. She met Perez when he was 16, shortly after he signed with the Royals. Perez calls Ramirez “my second mother” and when she asked him to support the foundation’s efforts, he said he jumped at the opportunity.

Across Kansas City — where Perez is known for his postgame water cooler showers from teammates, affectionately known as “Salvy Splash” — he is a constant figure in the community. From his $1 million donation to the city's Urban Youth Academy to his work with local ALS and children's cancer organizations to paying for surgeries to repair cleft lip in children and donations to local police, Perez hopes his Wide range of services to inspire other players can be non-profit.

“Sometimes you want to rest,” he said. “Even if you think about one day a month, just one day every month. That's it. Try to make one child happy one day every month. Do something. Even get your social media, make people happy. Take a photo with someone. Just one day every month. I think this will change the world.

A nine-time All-Star, Perez has won five Gold Gloves and was MVP of the 2015 World Series.

He posted typically strong numbers this year, leading the Royals to the playoffs for the first time in nine seasons and hitting .271/.330/.456 with 27 homers and 104 RBIs. Over his career, Perez hit .267/.303/.459 with 273 home runs and 916 RBIs in 1,552 games.