Mike Rizzo, the President and General Manager of the Washington Nationals, is this year’s Italian American Baseball Foundation Executive of the Year. He will be honored at a ceremony in New York in December.
“We could not think of a more deserving executive to receive this honor,” said IABF President/Founder Joe Quagliano. “He has reached the pinnacle of success by guiding Washington to a World Series title and running one of the top franchises in baseball in recent years.”
Past honorees include Gary Perrone (2017, Brooklyn Cyclones), Jon Morosi (2018, MLB Network), Natalie M. Spedaliere (2019, MLB Network) and JP Ricciardi (2020, SF Giants).
Rizzo joins Trey Mancini, this year’s IABF Tommy Lasorda Award recipient, as the first two honorees to be announced. Other award recipients will be released in the coming months.
Over the last 30 years, Rizzo has risen to one of the top executives in the game. Following a brief playing career – he was selected in the 22nd round by the Angels in 1982 – he was a coach at the University of Illinois and a scout with the Chicago White Sox, Boston Red Sox and Arizona Diamondbacks. It was with Arizona that he made the leap to Scouting Director from 2000 to 2006 and landed in Washington in 2007, first as Assistant General Manager, General Manager and since 2013 as President of Baseball Operations.
The annual IABF Awards Gala will be held in December in Brooklyn, N.Y. More information about tickets, location and logistics will be available later this summer.
About IABF
Started in 2016 with our inaugural dinner honoring Hall of Famer Mike Piazza, the Italian American Baseball Foundation (IABF) is a registered 501c3 charity that is committed to the future of baseball & softball for Italian & Italian – American youths on the high school, college and professional levels. While we move forward, we remember those who paved the way and brought us recognition and respect. Names like Dimaggio, Berra, Rizzuto, Righetti, and Franco still resonate today among the young students of the game. The IABF is adamant about adding new names to the list of Italian – American Baseball greats!
Our focus on developing young talent both in the US and Italy is top priority. Each year we sponsor several showcases and clinics that are conducted by former MLB players and top college coaches. We invite professional scouts and college recruiters to attend and evaluate the talent. We are working closely with several colleges and are deeply committed to helping those who qualify academically achieve a college education through baseball & Softball.
The IABF provides citizenship documentation assistance for Americans to play on the Italian Olympic and WBC Baseball teams.
The IABF donates equipment to individuals, teams, and leagues that qualify. Helping families by giving their children the opportunity to have the proper equipment is as important to us as if it was our own children.
