LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- The Kansas City Royals, along with all 29 other Major League clubs, MLB Advanced Media, Major League Baseball and MLB Network have organized a charity auction during the annual Winter Meetings to benefit a special cause -- this year,the auction will support the "Katharine Feeney Memorial Scholarship Fund."
The fund is in memory of Feeney, a pioneering baseball executive whose career spanned four decades.
• Winter Meetings Auction
The auction is live at MLB.com/wintermeetingsauction and runs through Thursday.
Fans can bid on three Royals offerings:
• Spring Training meet and greet and VIP experience -- opening bid $750
• Social media assistant for a day -- opening bid $750
• Team photographer for a day -- opening bid $500
The numerous people associated with the game who have been affected by cancer originally inspired the initiative for the auction, which has raised more than $900,000 since its inception. With Katy Feeney's unfortunate and sudden passing last April, as well as her commitment to helping and mentoring others throughout her 40 years in the game, the charity auction shifted to support this specific cause.
The fund will support an annual scholarship that will be awarded to a female student at the University of San Francisco who most exemplifies Feeney's character. Eligible candidates for the scholarship will be students who are pursuing a career in sports management and who also demonstrate a financial need to attain an advanced degree.
Feeney joined the office of the National League of Professional Baseball Clubs in 1977 and ascended to supervise the National League's scheduling and public-relations functions. When the NL and the American League Office merged with the Office of the Commissioner in 2000, Feeney directed the construction of the entire Major League schedule and managed many weather-related issues that affected the schedule.
Feeney was the daughter of Charles "Chub" Feeney, a longtime executive with the New York and San Francisco Giants and the former president of the National League.