When Mike Trout's charitable endeavors in Los Angeles to raise awareness about mental health earned him a Roberto Clemente Award nomination

Los Angeles Angels star Mike Trout is known for his on-field excellence. Apart from being an 11x All-Star center fielder, the MLB star has many other accolades that speak about the kind of player he is. Trout was once nominated for the Roberto Clemente Award because of his off-field contribution.

The MLB star has always been a prominent figure who gave back to those who needed it. Previously he has also worked with the Boys and Girls Club and has donated to charity auctions regularly to help people.

But after the suicide of his close friend and brother-in-law, Aron Cox, Trout joined the fight to bring mental health awareness and suicide prevention to the forefront. In early 2020, Trout and his wife Jessica moved forward. Following their partnership with Tiny Turnip, the couple created a custom products line. The proceeds from the sales of these custom products were directly sent to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

This collection, which was called 'Your Game Isn’t Over Yet', became quite successful in making people aware of mental health issues and raising funds. Due to his work excellent work with the organization and his continued attempts to raise people's awareness about various mental health issues and suicide prevention, the MLB star was nominated for the Rober Clemente Award in 2020.

Mike Trout reflects on his Roberto Clemente Award nomination

Angles star Mike Trout opened up on being nominated for the Roberto Clemente Award. He talked about how the suicide of his dear friend and brother-in-law was an eye-opener for him to see that suicide prevention and mental health issues were real and needed to be addressed as soon as possible.

"It means a lot. When I first started coming up, the main focus was playing the game, but I kind of sat back, talked about it with my wife. I’m here to play this game, but I’m also here to give back, and if you can make an impact on other people’s lives, it’s really huge. [Suicide prevention] obviously hits close, with Aaron’s passing. Mental health is real, especially during this pandemic. A lot of people are going through it; it’s a struggle. Just raising awareness."

Named after the great Roberto Clemente who died while trying to help the victims of an earthquake in Nicaragua, each year this award is given to a player who best stands out in the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement, and the individual’s contribution to his team.

This award was established in 1971, and it generally honors those who reach out to help the communities around them. Trout's immense contribution to the fight for mental health awareness and suicide prevention made him one of the best candidates to be nominated for this award.