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Always eager to give back to the community, former Virginia Tech pitcher Joe Saunders is one of 30 candidates for the prestigious 2011 Roberto Clemente Award. The award recognizes a Major League Baseball player who best represents the game of baseball through positive contributions on and off the field, including sportsmanship and community involvement.

Also announced earlier was Saunders' nomination by the Arizona Diamondbacks for the Marvin Miller Man of the Year Award, which honors players on the field as well as service in the community. Players on each of the Major Leagues’ 30 clubs nominated one of their teammates and Saunders was the selection from the D-backs.

Today, September 14 marks the 10th annual Roberto Clemente Day, which was established by MLB to honor his legacy and to officially recognize Club nominees of the award, presented by Chevrolet.

Beginning today, fans are encouraged to participate in the process of selecting the national award recipient by visiting ChevyBaseball.com/Clemente to vote for one of the nominees. Voting ends on October 9.

For more information on the announcement, check out the release on the D-Backs website. The official release can be seen on the MLB's website.

For updates on Virginia Tech baseball, follow the Hokies on Twitter (@VT_Baseball).