Tony Conigliaro Award

The Tony Conigliaro Award is a national recognition instituted in 1990 by the Boston Red Sox to honor the memory of Tony Conigliaro. It is given annually to a Major League Baseball (MLB) player who best "overcomes an obstacle and adversity through the attributes of spirit, determination, and courage that were trademarks of Conigliaro."

Tony Conigliaro
Tony Conigliaro, the namesake of the award
Given forGiven annually to a Major League Baseball player who best overcomes an obstacle and adversity through the attributes of spirit, determination and courage that were trademarks of Conigliaro.
Presented byBoston chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America
History
First award1990
Most recentDaniel Bard, Colorado Rockies

Conigliaro debuted with the Red Sox in 1964, and was selected to the MLB All-Star Game in the 1967 season. Subsequently, he was hit in the face by a pitch at Fenway Park on August 18, 1967. After missing the rest of the year and all of 1968, he made a comeback in 1969, homering on opening day. He then hit 20 home runs in that season, winning The Sporting News Comeback Player of the Year Award. In 1970, he posted career highs in home runs with 36 and RBIs with 116, but vision problems continued to persist; his performance fell off, and he was never the same player. After a final comeback attempt in 1975, Conigliaro retired at age 30.[1]

Conigliaro died in 1990, and the Red Sox instituted the award in his honor.[2] A panel is composed of the media, representatives of the commissioner, and the two leagues' offices. The selection is made by a panel of voters and the award is presented at the annual dinner of the Boston chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America, held in January, by members of the Conigliaro family.[3]

Award winners
Jim Abbott learned how to pitch and use a glove with only one hand.
Jon Lester helped the Red Sox win the 2007 World Series, one year after undergoing treatment for cancer.
^
 Indicates multiple award winners in the same year
 Denotes player who is still active
Year Player Team Adversity overcome Ref
1990 Jim Eisenreich Kansas City Royals Tourette syndrome [2]
1991 Dickie Thon Philadelphia Phillies A 1984 beaning very similar to the one that shortened Conigliaro's career [2][4]
1992 Jim Abbott California Angels Born without a right hand [5][6]
1993 Bo Jackson Chicago White Sox Hip replacement surgery in 1992 [7]
1994 Mark Leiter California Angels Death of 9-month-old son to spinal muscular atrophy during the offseason [8]
1995 Scott Radinsky Chicago White Sox Diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma [9]
1996 Curtis Pride Montreal Expos Born deaf [10]
1997 Eric Davis Baltimore Orioles Diagnosed with colon cancer early that season [11]
1998 Bret Saberhagen Boston Red Sox Serious shoulder injuries [12]
1999 Mike Lowell Florida Marlins Testicular cancer [13]
2000^ Kent Mercker Anaheim Angels Cerebral hemorrhage [14]
2000^ Tony Saunders Tampa Bay Devil Rays Broke arm while throwing a pitch [14]
2001^ Graeme Lloyd Montreal Expos Arthroscopic shoulder surgery in 2000, and the death of his wife from Crohn's disease [15]
2001^ Jason Johnson Baltimore Orioles Type 1 diabetes that required Johnson to wear an insulin pump on the field [16]
2002 José Rijo Cincinnati Reds Elbow injuries that required five surgeries and sidelined him for five years [17]
2003 Jim Mecir Oakland Athletics Born with two club feet [18]
2004 Dewon Brazelton Tampa Bay Devil Rays Reconstructive knee surgery and Tommy John surgery while in high school [19]
2005 Aaron Cook Colorado Rockies Blood clots in both lungs [20]
2006 Freddy Sanchez Pittsburgh Pirates Born with a club foot (right) and a severely pigeon-toed foot (left) [21]
2007 Jon Lester Boston Red Sox Diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2006 [22]
2008 Rocco Baldelli Tampa Bay Rays Diagnosed with a mitochondrial disorder that causes chronic muscle fatigue [23]
2009 Chris Carpenter St. Louis Cardinals Had Tommy John surgery and nerve problems in his throwing arm [24]
2010 Joaquín Benoit Tampa Bay Rays Sat out a year after a rotator cuff tear [25]
2011 Tony Campana Chicago Cubs Diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma as a child [26]
2012 R.A. Dickey New York Mets Victim of child sexual abuse, born without an ulnar collateral ligament in his right arm [27]
2013 John Lackey Boston Red Sox Underwent Tommy John surgery in 2012 [28]
2014 Wilson Ramos Washington Nationals Kidnapped in 2011, multiple injuries including a torn anterior cruciate ligament, a broken hamate bone, and repeated hamstring strains [29]
2015 Mitch Harris St. Louis Cardinals Delayed baseball career five years while serving in the United States Navy; first Naval Academy graduate to make MLB debut since 1921 [30]
2016 Yangervis Solarte San Diego Padres Death of his wife to cancer during the season, caring for their three young daughters [31]
2017 Chad Bettis Colorado Rockies Diagnosed with testicular cancer in November 2016, underwent surgery eight days later, went through chemotherapy until May 2017, and returned to baseball activities one month later [32]
2018 Stephen Piscotty Oakland Athletics Death of his mother to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis [33]
2019 Rich Hill Los Angeles Dodgers Numerous arm injuries and the public announcement of the death of his son Brooks [34]
2020 Daniel Bard Colorado Rockies Prior to the 2020 season, had last pitched in MLB in 2013 and had retired from professional baseball in 2017. [35]

See also

References
  1. "Jason Heyward, Max Stassi hope for quick returns from pitches to face". MLB.com. August 22, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2013.
  2. "Tony Conigliaro, Ray Chapman, and the Catastrophic Beaning «". Grantland.com. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  3. "Wilson Ramos wins Conigliaro award". ESPN.com. Associated Press. January 15, 2015. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
  4. "Baseball: Conigliaro award presented". Sun Journal. Lewiston, Maine. Associated Press. December 10, 1991. p. 25. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  5. Swaine, Rick. "Jim Abbott". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  6. "Honored". The Times-News. Associated Press. December 8, 1992. p. 1B. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  7. Swartz, Bryn. "Bo Jackson: What Could Have Been?". Bleacher Report. Retrieved January 2, 2015.
  8. "Leiter to receive Conigliaro award". The Telegraph. Associated Press. December 2, 1994. p. 46. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  9. "Yanks put Boggs on hold". Eugene Register-Guard. December 2, 1995. p. 7D. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  10. "Curtis Pride wins award for courage". The Argus-Press. Owosso, Michigan. Associated Press. December 11, 1996. p. 11. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  11. "Davis to receive Tony Conigliaro Award". Bangor Daily News. November 26, 1997. p. C5. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  12. "Henderson set to steal for the Mets". Eugene Register-Guard. Associated Press. December 14, 1998. p. 6B. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  13. "Marlins' Lowell wins Conigliaro award". Bangor Daily News. December 14, 1999. p. C5. Retrieved January 2, 2015.
  14. "Camden Yards Renovations | O's may add another dimension to Camden Yards renovations". The Baltimore Sun. December 10, 2000. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  15. "Luke set to fly with Blue Jays". The Sydney Morning Herald. April 7, 2002. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  16. "Pumped-up Johnson adds Tony C. Award to 10 wins". The Baltimore Sun. December 12, 2001. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  17. "Rijo wins Conigliaro Award". The Victoria Advocate. Victoria, Texas. December 14, 2002. p. 3B. Retrieved January 2, 2015.
  18. "Jim Mecir voted 2003 Tony Conigliaro Award winner". MLB.com (Press release). December 12, 2003. Retrieved October 15, 2013.
  19. Devil Rays Public Relations (December 10, 2004). "Tampa Bay's Dewon Brazelton wins 2004 Tony Conigliaro Award". MLB.com (Press release). Retrieved January 2, 2015.
  20. Harding, Thomas (January 13, 2006). "Cook inks two-year pact with Rockies: Righty also wins prestigious honor in Boston". MLB.com. Retrieved April 10, 2008.
  21. "Freddy Sanchez wins 2006 Tony Conigliaro Award". MLB.com (Press release). December 6, 2006. Retrieved April 10, 2008.
  22. Wilbur, Eric (November 28, 2007). "Lester gets the honor". The Boston Globe. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  23. Times Editor (November 25, 2008). "Rocco Baldelli wins Tony Conigliaro Award | Tampa Bay Times". Tampabay.com. Retrieved October 15, 2013.
  24. Keefe, Neil (January 11, 2010). "Chris Carpenter Wins 2009 Tony Conigliaro Award | MLB". NESN.com. Retrieved October 15, 2013.
  25. "Benoit receives Conigliaro Award for comeback | tigers.com: News". MLB.com. November 19, 2010. Retrieved May 20, 2013.
  26. "Tony C. wins Tony C. award « Muskat Ramblings". MLBlogs.com. December 9, 2011. Retrieved May 20, 2013.
  27. Pepin, Matt (December 6, 2012). "R.A. Dickey wins Tony Conigliaro Award". The Boston Globe. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  28. "John Lackey Wins 2013 Tony Conigliaro Award". MLB.com (Press release). December 3, 2013. Retrieved January 2, 2015.
  29. Pepin, Matt (January 16, 2014). "Nationals catcher Ramos wins Conigliaro Award". MSN Sports. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  30. "Cardinals pitcher Mitch Harris wins 2015 Tony Conigliaro Award". Fox Sports. Associated Press. December 15, 2015. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
  31. "Padres INF Yangervis Solarte wins Tony Conigliaro Award". USA Today. Associated Press. December 15, 2016. Retrieved December 16, 2016.
  32. "Colorado Rockies' Chad Bettis, a cancer survivor, named 2017 Tony Conigliaro Award winner". MassLive. December 7, 2017. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
  33. Smith, Christopher. "Stephen Piscotty, Athletics outfielder whose mother died of ALS, wins 2018 Tony Conigliaro Award". masslive.com. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
  34. Browne, Ian (December 20, 2019). "Rich Hill named recipient of '19 Conigliaro Award". MLB.com.
  35. Green, Dave (December 21, 2020). "Rockies reliever Daniel Bard wins Tony Conigliaro Award". NBC Sports. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
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