Royals’ Michael Wacha honored for his philanthropic work in KC and elsewhere
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- Michael Wacha earned MLBPA's Most Valuable Philanthropist award for May 2025
- Award includes $10,000 grant to Make-A-Wish Missouri & Kansas in Wacha’s name
- Wacha supports youth initiatives through Make-A-Wish and Urban Youth Academy
Following the Royals’ game Wednesday against the Atlanta Braves, pitchers Michael Wacha and Seth Lugo will head downtown.
They’ll take part in the “Royals Wives for Wishes” event, which benefits Make-A-Wish Missouri & Kansas. It’ll take place at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts.
The Make-A-Wish foundation also will be receiving a big donation in the future in Wacha’s name. That’s because the Major League Baseball Players Association’s Players Trust on Tuesday announced Wacha as the monthly winner of the Most Valuable Philanthropist award.
“No matter where Michael has played in the major leagues, he has always prioritized service and giving back to his communities,” Amy Hever, executive director of the Players Trust, said in a news release. “The time and resources he spends to make an impact off the field serves as a model for all players — and no one is more deserving of this recognition than him.”
With that comes a $10,000 grant to support Make-A-Wish of Missouri & Kansas.
Wacha was honored to be recognized but said it’s not why he helps others in Kansas City and other cities.
“It’s just something that me and my wife, we’ve always tried to do is give back to the community, kind of whatever city we’re in, and back to our hometowns as well,” Wacha said. “That’s kind of the people that we are but it’s definitely very cool to get acknowledged for something like that.”
Wacha was born in Iowa and his family moved to Texas when he was a young boy. His wife, Sarah, is from St. Louis.
In addition to working with the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Wacha has helped with the Urban Youth Academy. Sarah Wacha also puts on an annual event at Kauffman Stadium for teenagers who are in foster care.
“That’s just how I was raised, give back to the less fortunate,” Wacha said. “I’m very blessed that I get to be in this situation that I’m in, getting to play a game for a living. And there’s definitely people out there that are less fortunate than us, and so just try to give back any way that we can, to help them kind of have as good of a life as they can.”
This story was originally published July 30, 2025 at 12:47 PM with the headline "Royals’ Michael Wacha honored for his philanthropic work in KC and elsewhere."
