Bohm nominated for '21 Clemente Award

PHILADELPHIA – Jimmy Rollins and Greg Luzinski each won the Roberto Clemente Award while playing for the Phillies.

Alec Bohm is the Phillies’ latest nominee.

• All-time Roberto Clemente Award winners

Bohm is not with the Phillies these days. The team optioned him to Triple-A Lehigh Valley last month, and he is currently injured with a left sore wrist. It is unclear if he will rejoin the Phillies this season, but his work that earned him the nomination stands.

“There’s a lot of guys throughout the league, throughout the years, that have done a lot of great things,” Bohm said. “Just to even have the opportunity to be mentioned with them is something that’s pretty special.”

The Roberto Clemente Award is the annual recognition of a Major League Baseball player who best represents the game through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy and positive contributions, both on and off the field. As part of the annual program, each MLB club nominates one player to be considered for the league-wide award in tribute to Clemente’s achievements and character. Fans can vote for Bohm until Oct. 3 at mlb.com/clemente21.

Bohm created The Alec Bohm Foundation in 2019, one year prior to his big league debut. During COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns, the foundation helped to renovate Bohm's local church in Omaha, Neb. Through the interactions with his church, Bohm started to work with communities in Africa. His foundation supplied blankets and other necessities to orphaned children in Kampala, Uganda. It helped repair a church in Nairobi, Kenya. It dug a well to supply clean water to a children’s center in Bwindi, Uganda.

“It’s been fun to kind of watch and see the reactions of all the kids and see how much change we kind of helped make over there,” Bohm said. “[The church] had a dirt floor, so it started with just making a concrete floor with them. And then we went to a water well. Some of them don’t even have clean water. So just giving them simple things to help their lives be better.”

Locally, Bohm has worked with Phillies Charities, raised money to benefit first responders in Wilmington, Del., and established an annual grant to the Wounded Warrior Project.

“I think the most rewarding part is just kind of seeing the reactions,” Bohm said. “Seeing a bunch of little kids just jump around like it’s Christmas for clean water just puts it in perspective for a lot of things that we take for granted every day that a lot of other people don’t have. I just feel like that’s something that gets lost nowadays with this generation and everything, this fast-paced lifestyle that we live. It’s just picking up people when they’re down and helping out people. It’s a big thing of how I’ve been raised, I guess, just people helping people.”

Phillies hit 85 percent mark
Philadelphia manager Joe Girardi announced before Wednesday night’s game that the Phillies hit the 85 percent threshold for COVID-19 vaccinations. They were one of the final teams in baseball to reach the mark.

Some players in recent weeks decided to get the vaccine, which pushed the team over the top.

What does it mean? The Phillies no longer have to wear sensors for contact tracing purposes, which decreases the burden for the athletic training staff. The team has more flexibility in bringing additional people into the Tier 1 and 2 system, like Minor League coordinators and coaches.

Girardi downplayed the team finally hitting the mark.

“I don't really pay attention to it,” Girardi said. “I really don't. I know that I am vaccinated. But I have other things to worry about.”

Realmuto returns to the lineup
J.T. Realmuto played first base on Wednesday, after not playing Tuesday following a cortisone injection into his sore right shoulder. The Phillies hope Realmuto will be able to catch on Thursday. Philadelphia maintains that Realmuto will not need any offseason procedures to repair the shoulder.

“Our doctors have said he's good to go,” Girardi said. “'Get treatment and go.'”