Kansas City Royals named finalist for MLB honor for ‘Shut Out the Stigma’ initiative

The Kansas City Royals are a finalist for the prestigious 2023 Allan H. Selig Award for Philanthropic Excellence. The special honor recognizes a Major League Baseball team for their charitable efforts.

The Royals won the Selig Award in 2021. It was created in 2010 and is named after the former MLB Commissioner.

KC is one of five finalists this season. They are joined by the Arizona Diamondbacks, Cincinnati Reds, Minnesota Twins and Pittsburgh Pirates.

Fans will have a chance to vote for the overall winner. There is an open ballot through MLB.com that runs through Monday, Oct. 23.

“We are humbled and proud of being named a finalist for this prestigious award, as we view our club as an asset to the community,” Royals vice president of community impact Luis Maes said in a release.

The Royals raised awareness around mental health with their “Shut Out the Stigma” initiative. KC partnered with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City and focused on the impact of toxic pressure on young athletes.

This season, the Royals shared open letters from young athletes. The letters detailed how each athlete felt when dealing with perfectionism. The pressure to excel at unattainable levels could lead to mental health struggles.

The letters were geared to show parents, coaches and supporters how desires to win and attain perfection tend to negatively affect young athletes. The Royals took two of those letters and enlarged the pages to 10 feet by 7 feet, placing them around town.

In May, the Royals also debuted t-shirts that highlighted their “Progress over Perfection” slogan.

Additionally, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City also donated $30 for every shutout inning by a Royals pitcher. The Royals helped raise over $80,000 for local behavioral health organizations.

“Shut Out the Stigma is a great example of how we use our club’s unique assets and capabilities to shine a light on an important community challenge and help move the needle to address it,” Maes said.

A documentary was also released on YouTube this month in conjunction with the initiative — a short film titled “Not Good Enough.”

The film shared a close look at the impact perfectionism has on youth athletes. It featured interviews from parents, athletes, coaches and professionals.

One scene illustrated how pressure from a parent or coach can have a negative impact on the young athletes playing the game. The film also shared key facts about youth sports. For example, the documentary detailed that 70% of young athletes stop playing organized sports by 13 years old.

As a result, the Royals plan to continue seeking solutions and raising awareness for their initiative.

The Selig Award winner will be announced at a later date. The Chicago White Sox were announced as winners last season.