Texas Rangers All-Star Marcus Semien was named the overall winner of the 2023 Heart & Hustle Award, which is presented annually by the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association (MLBPAA) to one player on each team who “best embodies the values, spirits and traditions of baseball,” along with factoring in on-field performance.
Freddie Freeman was the Los Angeles Dodgers’ recipient of this year’s Heart and Hustle Award. The Dodgers are yet to have an MLB winner of the award.
The overall winner was selected by former and active players, in addition to fans constituting 5% of the total voting.
Semien is a four-time recipient of the team Heart and Hustle Award, receiving the honor with the Oakland Athletics, Toronto Blue Jays and Rangers. This year represented Semien’s first time winning the overall Heart & Hustle Award.
He finished the season batting .276/.348/.478 with 40 doubles, 29 home runs and 100 RBI. Semien added another 17 hits and 10 RBI during the Rangers’ World Series run.
Moreover, Semien played in all 179 Rangers games this year, which left him one shy of tying the MLB record held by Hideki Matsui for most in one season.
Among other accolades, Semien’s performance earned him a second career Silver Slugger Award and third-place finish for American League MVP.
Off the field, Semien helped support the Texas Rangers Youth Academy, where he sponsored a new weekly food distribution program for the academy during the summer. He also contributed to other Texas and Bay Area charities and various youth organizations.
Semien was named the winner of the 2023 Marvin Miller Man of the Year Award, which is given to a player “whose leadership most inspires others to higher levels of achievement.”
All-time Heart and Hustle Award winners
2005: David Eckstein
2006: Craig Biggio
2007: Craig Biggio
2008: Grady Sizemore
2009: Albert Pujols
2010: Roy Halladay
2011: Torii Hunter
2012: Mike Trout
2013: Dustin Pedroia
2014: Josh Harrison
2015: Anthony Rizzo
2016: Todd Frazier
2017: Brett Gardner
2018: Mookie Betts
2019: Howie Kendrick
2020: N/A due to pandemic
2021: Ozzie Albies
2022: Paul Goldschmidt
2023: Marcus Semien
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