Roberto Enrique Clemente was a professional baseball player for the Pittsburgh Pirates. He wore number 21 and played right field. Though he was a hall of fame player due to his talents on the field, he is perhaps best known for his efforts off the field. Roberto Clemente was born on August 18th, 1934 …show more content…
Clemente's transition to the big leagues was often extremely difficult. He faced a lot of racism, not only from across the league, but in his own clubhouse as well. The media often referred to Bob Clemente and gave him a hard time due to his inability to speak proper English. During his first season as a Pirate, Clemente was hit by a drunk driver and missed several games. Through all of this though, the moral discipline he learned growing up helped him overcome all of these obstacles. During his career, Roberto won many awards with the Pirates. He won the National League Gold Glove award given to the best fielder, 12 consecutive years. He was named the World Series MVP in 1971 and the National League MVP in 1966. In 2006, Clemente's wife was given the Commissioner's Historic Achievement Award on his behalf. Clemente also received many Achievements as a Pirate. He made the All Star team 12 times and had the best batting average in the league four times. He was the National League hits leader twice and National League leader in put outs by a right fielder three times. All of these awards and achievements led to his election into the baseball hall of fame on a special ballot in