Cubs superstar Pete Crow-Armstrong wins National League MVP unanimously, beating Shoehi Ohtani
Cubs center fielder edges Shohei Ohtani after a monster season and Ohtani's late injuries
Quick Look
- Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong won the 2026 National League MVP award unanimously, the BBWAA announced Thursday.
- Crow-Armstrong hit .280/.372/.570 with 45 home runs, 41 steals, and 9.8 WAR across all 162 games, joining the 40-40 club.
- Shohei Ohtani finished second.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The Baseball Writers' Association of America votes on the National League MVP award using two voters from each of the 15 chapters housing NL teams. Each voter submits a ballot with 10 players ranked 1-10, with first-place votes worth 14 points. Ballots are due before the playoffs begin. Shohei Ohtani was the overwhelming favorite heading into the season and through the All-Star break before injuries and Crow-Armstrong's performance shifted the outcome.
Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong won the National League MVP award for the 2026 season unanimously, the BBWAA revealed Thursday evening.
The Baseball Writers' Association of America ballot uses two voters from each of the 15 chapters housing NL teams. Each voter submits a ballot with 10 players, ranked 1-10. A first-place vote gets a player 14 points, while second place earns nine, third place eight, etc., until a 10th-place vote earns one point. Ballots are due before the playoffs begin, as this is a regular-season award.
Though the results were unsurprising by the time the year wound down, going back to the start of the season, this marks a huge upset. Shohei Ohtani was the overwhelming favorite to win the award heading into the season and maintained favorite status through the All-Star break. A combination of his injuries and PCA's monster season turned the tide late.
Appearing in all 162 games, Crow-Armstrong hit .280/.372/.570 (156 OPS+) with 31 doubles, eight triples, 45 home runs, 107 RBI, 119 runs, 41 steals and 9.8 WAR. He led the majors in WAR, runs, home runs and total bases while leading the NL in slugging, OPS and OPS+. He became the seventh player in MLB history to join the 40-40 club (40 home runs and 40 steals in the same season). Further, he led the majors in multiple advanced defensive metrics, putting together one of the great all-around seasons from a position player in recent memory.
PCA joins the following list of Cubs to win MVP:
Kris Bryant, 2016
Sammy Sosa, 1998
Andre Dawson, 1987
Ryne Sandberg, 1984
Ernie Banks, 1958 and 1959
Hank Sauer, 1952
Phil Cavaretta, 1945
Gabby Hartnett, 1935
Hack Wilson, 1930
Rogers Hornsby, 1929
Frank Schulte, 1911
Ohtani, the four-time MVP, finishes in second. At the plate, Ohtani hit .275/.377/.512 with 26 doubles, four triples, 30 home runs, 81 RBI, 89 runs, 11 steals and 3.2 WAR. On the mound, he was 8-2 with a 1.79 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 95 strikeouts in 85 ⅔ innings with 3.2 WAR.
Open Questions
- What was the final point total for Pete Crow-Armstrong and Shohei Ohtani?
- Which specific injuries affected Shohei Ohtani late in the season?
- How many first-place votes did Crow-Armstrong receive?
