Red Sox pitcher Cam Booser has been named the 2024 recipient of the Tony Conigliaro Award, an honor celebrating Major League Baseball players who have triumphed over significant adversity.
At 32 years old, Booser becomes the fourth Red Sox player to receive this distinguished award, joining Bret Saberhagen (1998), Jon Lester (2007), and John Lackey (2013). The previous year’s winner, Liam Hendriks, was honored as a member of the White Sox before signing with Boston earlier this year.
Booser’s journey to this accolade is one of remarkable resilience. After initially retiring from baseball in November 2017, he battled alcohol abuse and recovered from multiple injuries, including a broken back sustained in a car accident. During his retirement, Booser worked as a carpenter and construction worker while coaching baseball at a facility in Washington.
In 2020, amid the COVID pandemic, he began throwing off the mound again and eventually returned to the game by playing independent league baseball. The Red Sox took notice, signing him to a minor league contract on February 6, 2023. He spent that season pitching for Triple-A Worcester and returned to the team in 2024 before making his MLB debut on April 19. Booser went on to post an impressive 3.38 ERA in 43 appearances (42 ⅔ innings) for Boston.
Expressing his gratitude in a team statement, Booser said, “I want to express my deepest gratitude to the Conigliaro family for their commitment to keeping Tony’s legacy alive and for believing that I deserve this award. To have my name in the same conversation as Tony Conigliaro is something that I will always hold close. I would like to thank my family; without them, I would not be the man I am today. I’d like to thank the Boston Red Sox for believing in me enough to give me an opportunity. I’d also like to thank the committee, the media members, and Major League Baseball—this is truly humbling.”
First presented in 1990 to Jim Eisenreich of the Kansas City Royals, the Tony Conigliaro Award recognizes players who embody the spirit, determination, and courage associated with Tony Conigliaro, a former Red Sox outfielder whose career was tragically cut short due to a severe injury.
