Fans to Help Select 2015 Marvin Miller Man of the Year
NEW YORK, September 11, 2015 /3BL Media/ – Online balloting at www.MLBPLAYERS.com opened today so fans can select the six finalists for the 2015 Marvin Miller Man of the Year award, which goes to the player whose on-field performance and contributions to his community most inspire others to higher levels of achievement.
The online voting, in which fans choose a finalist in each division, will continue through midnight, September 13. The finalists will appear on the ballot Wednesday, September 16, when all Major Leaguers vote to select the Players Choice Awards in balloting conducted at clubhouses across the country under the supervision of accounting firm KPMG.
In addition to the Marvin Miller Man of the Year, players will select an overall Player of the Year, as well as the outstanding players, pitchers, rookies and comeback players in their respective leagues.
In 2014 balloting, Clayton Kershaw became the first player to ever win three Players Choice Awards in a single year as he was recognized by his fellow players as the NL’s Outstanding Pitcher and the overall Player of the Year as well as the Marvin Miller Man of the Year.
Past Marvin Miller Man of the Year winners, named for the legendary MLBPA union leader, also include Mariano Rivera, Chipper Jones, Michael Young, Brandon Inge, Curtis Granderson, Torii Hunter, Albert Pujols, Jim Thome, John Smoltz, Mike Sweeney, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Eric Davis and Paul Molitor.
The 2015 Players Choice Awards winners will receive grants totaling $335,000 from the Players Trust to distribute to charities of their choosing, including for the first time, $2,500 to all 30 Marvin Miller Man of the Year award nominees. Since the first Players Choice Awards presentations in 1992, the Players Trust has contributed more than $4 million to charities around the world through grants to the award recipients.
The following players were nominated by their teammates for the 2015 Marvin Miller Man of the Year award:
Arizona Diamondbacks – Brad Ziegler; Atlanta Braves – Jason Grilli; Baltimore Orioles – Adam Jones; Boston Red Sox - Craig Breslow; Chicago Cubs - Anthony Rizzo; Chicago White Sox – David Robertson; Cincinnati Reds - Skip Schumaker; Cleveland Indians – Lonnie Chisenhall; Colorado Rockies – Carlos Gonzalez; Detroit Tigers – Miguel Cabrera; Houston Astros – George Springer; Kansas City Royals – Alex Gordon; Los Angeles Angels – Joe Smith; Los Angeles Dodgers – Justin Turner; Miami Marlins – Dee Gordon; Milwaukee Brewers - Jonathan Lucroy; Minnesota Twins – Brian Dozier; New York Mets – Curtis Granderson; New York Yankees – CC Sabathia; Oakland Athletics – Stephen Vogt; Philadelphia Phillies – Carlos Ruiz; Pittsburgh Pirates – Jared Hughes ; San Diego Padres – Andrew Cashner; San Francisco Giants – Buster Posey; Seattle Mariners - Robinson Cano; St. Louis Cardinals – Adam Wainwright; Tampa Bay Rays – Chris Archer; Texas Rangers – Robinson Chirinos; Toronto Blue Jays - Jose Bautista; Washington Nationals – Ryan Zimmerman
About MLBPA
The Major League Baseball Players Association (www.MLBPLAYERS.com ) is the collective bargaining representative for all professional baseball players of the thirty Major League Baseball teams and serves as the exclusive group licensing agent for commercial and licensing activities involving active Major League baseball players. On behalf of its members, it operates the Players Choice licensing program and the Players Choice Awards, which benefit the needy through the Major League Baseball Players Trust (www.PlayersTrust.org), a charitable foundation established and run entirely by Major League baseball players. Follow: @MLB_Players; @MLBPAClubhouse; @MLBPlayersTrust
Media Contact: Greg Bouris, MLBPA Director of Communications, 212/826-0808 (O); gbouris@mlbpa.org
