Wearing No. 21 as Roberto Clemente Award nominee holds 'extra significance' for Jacob Stallings

Jacob Stallings already viewed the opportunity to wear No. 21 with his Pittsburgh Pirates teammates in celebration of Roberto Clemente Day as “one of the coolest days in Major League Baseball.”

When Stallings wears that number on the back of his jersey against the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday night at PNC Park, it will take on an extra special meaning. The Pirates nominated the 31-year-old catcher as their team choice for the Roberto Clemente Award, presented to the MLB player who “best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement and the individual’s contribution to his team.”

“I would say it does. Anytime you’re recognized like this, there comes more responsibility with it,” Stallings said Tuesday afternoon after batting practice. “At the same time, being specifically the Pittsburgh Pirates nominee, being the team he played for, it holds extra significance. It’s something I really look forward to.”

When summoned to meet with Bob Nutting, Stallings inititally had no idea what the Pittsburgh Pirates chairman wanted and wondered whether he was in some kind of trouble. When Nutting revealed Stallings was the club’s nominee for the award named after the legendary Pirates Hall of Fame right fielder, Stallings was overwhelmed with emotion.

“It’s pretty amazing, honestly. It certainly wasn’t something I was expecting,” Stallings said Tuesday afternoon at PNC Park. “It was really cool, just hearing Bob talk about why they nominated me. I was getting emotional and didn’t really know what to say, other than ‘Thank you.’ It’s just an amazing honor and something that’s really cool.”

More than anything, Stallings was surprised and touched to learn the Pirates made an “unbelievable donation” to the charity of his choice, Compassion International, which assists impoverished children around the world. Stallings said his family has a sponsored a boy named Miguel from the Dominican Republic since 2014.

Pirates manager Derek Shelton called Stallings’ nomination “very well-deserving,” noting his impact in charitable efforts.

“He takes pride in what his voice is in the community and the things that he can get behind,” Shelton said. “I think that’s what exemplifies not only him as a leader in our clubhouse but in the community and for Pirates Charities.”

The Pirates nominated Stallings for his charitable work despite strict covid-19 protocols. He helped host a virtual PLAYBALL event for the Boys and Girls Club of Manatee County in Florida and participated in the Pirates Charities Players’ Favorite Things Basket Auction, which supports Allegheny Health Network’s efforts to provide free mammograms to women in Western Pennsylvania.

“Jacob embodies the spirit of The Great One in the way he carries himself and how he represents our organization on and off the field,” Nutting said in a statement. “The Roberto Clemente Award is very special to the Pirates, and we are incredibly proud of Jacob and all of the 2021 nominees.”

Stallings also said he enjoyed spending the day with Caleb “The Crusher” Gallagher from the Miracle League of South Hills for a special session before he threw out the ceremonial first pitch before a game last month at PNC Park. Stallings said Gallagher told him all about his pitch repertoire and threw his favorite pitches in the batting cage, then struck out St. Louis Cardinals star catcher Yadier Molina.

“Obviously, we haven’t been able to get in the community as much this year with covid and all the protocols with Major League Baseball and all of that, so to have him here was cool,” Stallings said. “It was cool to be able to interact with him. He signed a ball for me. I’ve got it in my locker. To have him here was fun, not just for me but there were a number of guys who got to hang out with him.”

Stallings has heard stories about Clemente since his childhood, starting with his father, former Pitt basketball coach Kevin Stallings, sharing memories of watching him play “and how incredible of a player he was.” What impressed Stallings most is not that Clemente was a 15-time All-Star, 12-time Gold Glove winner and 1966 NL MVP and 1971 World Series MVP who finished his career with 3,000 hits but rather that he died when his plane crashed while delivering supplies on a humanitarian mission to help earthquake victims in Nicaragua on New Year’s Eve 1972.

“We all know his accolades as a player,” Stallings said. “The longer I’ve been here, the more stories I’ve heard about the lives he impacted off the field, whether it’s a simple story of how he was kind to someone 50 years ago or whatever, how that still sticks with that person to this day, and, obviously, all the work he did in Puerto Rico. I think that’s why I got emotional when Bob said they were nominating me, just because I’m certainly not a perfect person, so to be mentioned in the same realm as him is pretty special and certainly not something I take lightly.”