Seattle ace Felix Hernandez is among 10 major league players nominated for the 48th annual Hutch Award, which will be announced later this fall and presented at the annual Hutch Award luncheon Jan. 30, 2013 at Safeco Field. Former Mariners manager Lou Pinella, now retired, will deliver the keynote address.
In addition to Hernandez, the 2013 nominees include Alex Gordon of the Kansas City Royals, Ryan Ludwick of the Cincinnati Reds, Brandon McCarthy of the Oakland Athletics, Logan Morrison of the Miami Marlins, Jake Peavy of the Chicago White Sox, Rickie Weeks of the Milwaukee Brewers, Ryan Zimmerman of the Washington Nationals and Barry Zito of the San Francisco Giants.
The Hutch Award recipient is selected annually through a vote of all surviving former winners. A total of 47 players have been honored since 1965, when Mickey Mantle accepted the inaugural award.
Early recipients include Sandy Koufax, Carl Yastrzemski, Willie McCovey and Lou Brock. More recently, Jamie Moyer, Craig Biggio, Jon Lester, Tim Hudson and Billy Butler have joined their ranks.
The award is given annually to a major league player who best exemplifies the honor, courage and dedication of baseball legend and manager Fred Hutchinson, who died of cancer Nov. 12, 1964.
Hutchinson pitched for the Seattle Rainiers (1938), had a 10-year major league career with the Detroit Tigers, managed the Seattle Rainiers to the 1955 Pacific Coast League pennant, and had major league managerial stints with the Tigers, St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds.
The Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, founded by Freds brother, Dr. Bill Hutchinson, after Fred succumbed to cancer at age 45, is an independent, non-profit research institution dedicated to the understanding, treatment and prevention of cancer and related diseases.
At Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, interdisciplinary teams of world-renowned scientists including three Nobel laureates seek new and innovative ways to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer, HIV/AIDS and other life-threatening diseases.