Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor wins the 2026 Roberto Clemente Award

New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor won the Roberto Clemente Award on Monday, Major League Baseball's annual honor for a player who represents the game through character, community work and philanthropy. Lindor was set to receive it before Game 3 of the World Series tonight in St. Petersburg.

Lindor, a five-time All-Star, is the fifth recipient of Puerto Rican descent, joining Edgar Martinez (2004), Carlos Delgado (2006), Carlos Beltrán (2013) and Yadier Molina (2018), according to the Associated Press report carried by ESPN.

The list of his work is long. Lindor and his wife, Katia, have worked with Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, the SEEN Foundation disability advocacy group, Special Olympics Florida and Boys & Girls Clubs of America. He gave to relief efforts in Puerto Rico after Hurricanes Maria and Fiona and restored athletic facilities in his hometown of Caguas. He also gave more than $1 million to build Lindor Hall at Montverde Academy, the Florida school he graduated from.

Closer to Citi Field, he started a leadership development program for students in the sports medicine program at Bayside High School and paid for backpacks and school supplies in Queens.

The award carries the name of Roberto Clemente, the 15-time All-Star from Puerto Rico who died in a plane crash on New Year's Eve 1972 while trying to deliver supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.

What to watch: the pregame presentation before Game 3 between the Rays and Brewers tonight in St. Petersburg.