Hutch Award
The Hutch Award is an award given to an active Major League Baseball player who best exemplifies the fighting spirit and competitive desire to win. The award was created in 1965 in honor of Fred Hutchinson, a former MLB player and manager, who died of cancer at the age of 45 in late 1964.
The award was created by Hutch's longtime friends Bob Prince, broadcaster of the Pittsburgh Pirates; Jim Enright, a Chicago sportswriter; and Ritter Collett, sports editor of the Dayton Journal Herald. A scholarship fund was also created for medical students engaged in cancer research in Hutch's memory. The award is presented each January in Seattle, WA, Hutch's hometown at the annual Seattle Post-Intelligencer Sports Star of the Year. The winner is then feted at an Award Luncheon organized during the following baseball season, which also serves to raise funds for cancer research.
The Hutch Award trophy has been on permanent display in the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY, since 1979, with the list of winners updated yearly. A replica is on display in Seattle.
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