With under a week remaining in the regular season, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Yordan Alvarez continue their reign atop the MVP polls! (9/22/2026)
If you told me at the beginning of the year that the Yankees would have 2 top 5 MVP candidates and neither one of them is Aaron Judge, I would have said you’re crazy.
I don’t even think I would have had a good guess who the player would have been preseason unless a newer player had a breakout year
I would have guessed Rice. Look at his savant page from last year. I reckon he’d be above Schlittler if Judge stayed healthy in 2026, he seems to be better when they’re both in the lineup.
And you guys still wouldn’t win the division. Weird season.
If I was a Rays fan I would despise this comment.
I feel confident enough in the 99.2% chance to make that comment. It isn’t the end goal anyway.
Schlittler is a fake candidate, nobody is voting for a pitcher as MVP unless they put up TRULY insane generational numbers
Kershaw’s 14 mvp had a .2 ERA / .1 WHIP lower than Cam + a nono + 41 consecutive scoreless inning streak + >20wins, for reference
None of this is to discount schlittler balling out this year, its just that pitchers have their own award.
Flair of course unrelated
It is lol, mvp is a position player award
However, fuck the yankees
The NL loves the DH for MVP now i guess.
Show me the requirements that it’s for position players only.
Seems about right
What an insane season from PCA
I know he was pretty hyped as a prospect but man I never imagined him being this much of a force. Especially the power (obviously)
Im more shocked at how well his hit tool developed
In terms of OBP, he went from a borderline 4th of his rookie year to one of the best hitters in the league
I was pretty hyped for him coming up but never did I think he’d possibly lead the league in homers
For sure. This type of thing just doesn’t happen.
Yeah, you really have to give it to him. Ohtani faded from injuries and while Miz has been incredible it’s hard for any pitcher to get it since they play once or twice a week. I think he’d have to have been over 20 wins to get it. The rest of the top 5 are just a step lower.
Does Shohei even deserve to be 2 anymore? Miz has been much more valuable this season
As a cubs fan, I would hate it, but as someone who thinks chaos is funny, Ohtani somehow still winning because of name recognition would be hilarious
Why in the hell would you think that’s funny? Ohtani hasn’t pitched most of the season and has been in a slump the last month or so, besides also being injured.
It would be highway robbery for him to get it.
Im the biggest Ohtani fan ever and I think it would be bullshit if he won it this year. PCA had an incredible year and I’m happy with Ohtani getting MVP2
Absurdist sense of humor
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I was fully convinced Schlittler would be at least 3, but I get the bias against pitchers
The innings counts for top pitchers being as low as they are these days makes it very hard for them to overcome the “not an everyday player” thing.
edit: The last pitcher to win AL MVP was Verlander in 2011. He faced 969 batters that season (251 IP). Schlitter is 222 batters and 60.1 IP shy of those marks at present.
Curious why you wouldn’t reference the most recent pitcher to win an MVP in Clayton Kershaw (in 2014), who only threw 198 innings. This is quite comparable to Schlittler this season who is at 190 innings, likely with 1 start left. Their bWAR is also in the same ballpark, and Schlittler actually has the better ERA+ and a higher K/9. Kershaw smokes Schlittler in fWAR though.
Kershaw’s competition was pretty weak that year, but Schlittler’s this year is similarly weak given Alvarez’s relative dropoff in the second half. I’m genuinely surprised Schlittler is not getting more love here.
Kershaw batted back then, fwiw
Ohtani made people too comfortable with a DH winning MVP
Using batters faced is a pretty dumb comparison, it punishes you for a 1-2-3 inning. The innings pitched is a much fairer comparison.
When Kershaw won in 2014, he had similar innings pitched. Lower ERA and much better record though.
Both outs obtained and number of PAs involved in provide context.
edit: Despite a vaguely similar IP total, Kershaw’s 2014 was extremely different. For one thing, he had 0.5 bWAR as a hitter. For another, the role in which he put up a similar-ish IP functioned vastly differently: he missed five starts in April, but averaged 7.1 IP per start for the year, with a 15 K no-hitter and 5 other complete games. The W-L record was a mind-bogglingly gaudy 21 Ws, 3 Ls, and 3 NDs. He faced a hitter for a third time in 218 PAs and had 50 PAs by guys facing him for a 4th+ time.
Schlittler has averaged under 6 IP per start, faced a hitter for a third time in 169 PAs, and for a fourth time in just 4 PAs. It’s a nice deserving Cy Young season performing a role that’s unrecognizable from twelve years ago.
yeah, in that fewer batters faced / outs obtained is better, which is why saying Schittler is 222 batters shy is meaningless
Less than four batters per inning is crazy.
They need to go out of their way to say that pitchers can’t win it already. Cause is ridiculous
Over Caminero 100%. Rice being 5 is genuinely hilarious though. He isn’t even the second best 1st basemen in the division. Vargas is nearly identical to Caminero statistically and he probably won’t get votes.
I don’t think it’s that homer of a take, but I would argue that Vargas’ numbers are a step below Caminero’s. OPS is nearly 50 points lower, wRC+ is almost 10 points lower, 8 fewer home runs, and they both grade similarly poorly on defensive. Vargas 100% deserves down-ballot votes, but Caminero has had the statistically better year.
It’s crazy to say looking at Vargas, but the 10 points of WRC+ is made up by baserunning and Vargas being very bad instead of league worst on defense
Vargas has been a worse hitter but better on the bases and on defense enough to make up for it. Caminero has been 1 run better on offense and 1 run worse on defense.
Vargas is definitley going to get votes, it’s a 10 player ballot. Caminero also has Vargas beat by about 50 points of OPS. I wouldn’t call their years identical.
It’s only 8 points of wrc+. Plus Vargas has been more valuable on defense and has been a plus baserunner while Caminero has been minus. They both have 5.2 fwar right now. Caminero leads 5.6 to 5.4 in bwar. Basically a dead heat.
have you considered rice’s beautiful smile?
Vargas has been so damn good this year it’s crazy. Obviously I don’t care for the white Sox, but I’m glad they are better this year so he isn’t being wasted on a dumpster fire
He was such a monster in spring and early summer I’m guessing he fell off hard
It’s so difficult for a pitcher to win MVP. Not only do they not play enough, but they have an award dedicated specifically to them, so it’s kinda fair
Batters also have an award of their own. Hank Aaron award.
Which nobody cares about and has no prestige. I hate this disingenuous argument everytime.
It has no prestige because people like yourself keep putting it off. The award has been around for over 25 years, the leagues best hitters win it and thats a VERY difficult task to do because theres so much competition.
MVP Award should have no bias towards any player as the Pitcher and Batters each have their own award for the best in their class.
How is ‘there is an award for best hitter’ a “disingenuous” argument?
Its not as big a deal as the MVP (just like the Cy Young isn’t). So what? Its an award to recognize the best hitter of the year, there’s literally nothing else to say.
It’s just so incredibly hard to win MVP as a pitcher nowadays, especially in years with multipe 40 HR hitters like Yordan, Caminero, Alonso and potentially Rice.
Also Pitchers have their own special award which he’s likely to win for the AL so….I can see why unless pitchers have just a historically insane season the MVP doesn’t usually go to them.
yeah I totally get that part. it just feels like Cam was more valuable for his team than the other targets. I understand the argument for the other guys though, it’s not a clear cut winner unlike the NL
So do offensive players, the Hank Aaron award
I don’t think Schlittler is going to win MVP nor do I necessarily think he should, but this framing is always off, the equivalent of Cy Young for hitters isn’t MVP.
Hank Aaron Award explicitly ignores fielding, position and baserunning. It’s not a position player equivalent of Cy Young.
Okay? He said hitters and you get all sensitive about fielding and position.
silver slugger accounts for position, and gold gloves accounts for both fielding and position? The point is that “pitchers already have an award” is dumb when fielders have tons of awards. You can be the 30th best hitter/fielder and still walk away with a gold glove/silver slugger depending on the position, you can be the 2nd best pitcher and get a pat on the back “try again next year”
Correct, as I said it’s an offensive award. That still does not change the fact that the equivalent of Cy Young for position players is not the MVP award lol
I don’t think Cam is the MVP, but if being the best player on the second best team in the AL isn’t MVP worthy, then I don’t know what is.
Because how good your team is shouldn’t hold as much weight in an individual award like the MVP. Shohei and Trout being the best players in the league when the Angels were terrible didn’t change how good they were. It’s hard to carry a team in baseball by yourself. The best player on the Brewers isn’t necessarily the best player in the league. It’s why I don’t understand people saying Bobby isn’t an MVP because the Royals didn’t make the playoffs. I never heard that argument for the Angels’ players.
I’m of the opinion that negative performance shouldn’t disqualify or hurt your candidacy, ala Trout and Ohtani. However, if you have a player that is carrying a team then it should definitely help your cause. Without Cam, the Yankees would have been all kinds of fucked and likely competing for the third WC at best. That and being the best pitcher in the league this year, having a record-breaking season, makes him MVP worthy.
Again, I don’t think he’s going to win it, but that’s his case.
How good or bad a player’s team is is irrelevant to the award. Being the best player in the AL is what makes someone MVP worthy
crow-armstrong’s hitting streak is still going strong too
Okay? Zero relevance here. Probably a bot comment too.
Kyle Schwarber and his 2.8 fWAR does not belong here lmao
i mean do any of the rankings past PCA really matter at this point lol. The NL MVP is locked up
Top 3/5/10 MVP finishes have historically been used for contract bonuses and to judge Hall of Fame resumes. Not saying that will necessarily end up being consequential for Schwarber or anyone else that would compete for that spot, but it could.
Yes and no, imo.
It doesnt matter because he won’t win, obviously.
It does matter because him being that high over others, proves that the voters arent looking at the stats properly, and are just doing whatever they want, which I’d hate to see.
The Schwarbarian can crush it, and is popular throughout MLB. Even with rival fan bases, but he isnt 5th in MVP votes good. Not this year.
I’ll also just add on a more serious note that I think I agree Schwarber isn’t 5th (as much as my bias wants me to disagree), but I do appreciate the voters not just defaulting to “who has the most WAR” as I think a lot of people do. I imagine their argument is basically that it feels like the guy tied for league-leading HRs should be somewhere, so literally “but 45 HRs”.
Again, I don’t personally think that’s really good enough reason to put him 5th, but i’m fine with some level of voting rationale that’s not purely based off of sorting the table by fWAR or bWAR.
>proves that the voters arent looking at the stats properly, and are just doing whatever they want
first time?
It’s the original engagement bait. Absolutely timeless, works every time.
PCA 45 HR 6 errorsSchwarber 45 HR 1 error
You tell me who the real MVP is
I love them both and will never forgive the cubs for letting him walk
To defend the Cubs a bit, Schwarber was atrocious in the season where they DFA’d him. It obviously has aged horribly in hindsight, but you do get where the Cubs were coming from at the time.
But have you considered 45 HRs?
I rest my case.
Have you considered Alex Bregman is going to win a gold glove while being an elite hitter or the other 3 pitchers with more than 5 war in the NL.
Brice Turang has 7 war on the best team in baseball
Yah and 5.3 fwar. Didn’t realize that. Should definitely be in the conversation for number 5 along with Bregman and the pitchers.
5.3
You ever heard someone say “chicks dig fWAR”?
Baseball discussion is being ruined by everything turning into a WAR leaderboard.
Who really cares if Schwarber is ranked fifth on some article? PCA is winning unanimously
Personally, I would’ve put Cristopher Sanchez over Schwarber because Sanchez is WAY more valuable to Philly than Schwarber. With that being said, I get why he’s in the top five: the homers. That’s it.
aw come on isn’t it fun to watch Kyle Schwarber go “it’s schwarbin’ time” and then schwarb the ball into the right field bleachers
No, his 8 SO from the record ass does not.
He somehow finished second last year. It made no sense
PCA has it in the bag. Hell of a year for the guy.
These lists should come with spacing to show how far separated the entries on the list are. Although if that were the case Schwarber would be several posts below this one lol
And would have more than several other players ahead of him
PCA should be in a tier all his own then.
Kevin McGonigle disrespect is insane
I was never going to give him the top spot, but leaving him out of the top 5 is rude
That’s what im sayin!! If he weren’t a rookie he would be there.
Schwarber on here is pure rage bait. There are like 5 Phillies higher in WAR than him. Also Tatis, turang, bregman all worth a mention
I was hoping Bregman could sneak into the top 5, but I think he would have needed to hit 30 HR.
PCA winning MVP is the best ending to the Mets season honestly lol. Good for him, great player.
wasn’t a few months of a season of Javy Baez fun though
Vargas and Bregman should both be on their respective lists. They both can be argued to be better than Caminero and both clear Rice and Schwarber.
Vargas should be at least 3rd.
PCA hasn’t just been great for his own team, he also reactivated Cal Raleigh’s dumper.
AL should be Schlittler. 7WAR, 1.94 ERA, 190+ IP, 234+K. The last time AL MVP was won by a pitcher was Verlander in 2011. 8.6WAR, 2.40ERA, 250IP, 250K.
Also where is Kevin “The Professor” McGonigle? 6.7WAR(3rd in the MLB by position player) batting .274/.376/.424 as a 22yo ROOKIE
MVP voting is biased against pitchers since they already have the Cy Young. There should be a batter exclusive award and then the MVP would be the best out of the both sides
Isn’t it the Hank Aaron award?
Guess im dumb, but that probably stands to show how not as prestigious that award is compared to how the Cy Young is viewed for pitchers
McGonigle is winning ROY for sure
Why is Rice there and not Alonso? Both of them have similar numbers in all categories.
I know Alonso won’t win it but I believe he is a top 10 if not a top 5.
The real question is why is either of them here instead of Vargas or McGonigle.
Factos.
McGonigle putting up 6.7 WAR as a 22yo Rookie to boot.
I gotta think because Rice was in some sense leading the MVP discussion through May (I’m guessing idk when his fall off started) and people just remember that when they get past the top three.
He’s been really good still but should not be Top 5.
He’s 9th in WAR for AL position players. Include pitchers and you can see why he’s not close to top 5
Edit: this weirdo blocked me? That’s insane
Because the Orioles are ass
That should be why Pete finishes high. Obviously I don’t expect him to win it but a top 5 finish would be nice. He came in 11th last year and had objectively worse stats other than RBI and Slugging %. So hopefully top 10 if not top 5.
.265/.359/.510 40 homers 108 RBI 95 Runs and 4.6 WAR while playing for this sorry ass franchise is something incredible.
How is ohtani still #2? He hasn’t played to that of his mvp level in what feels like months.
Ohtani is still #2 overall in fWAR despite being injured and slumping for the better part of two months. That’s just how good he can be if he’s healthy
Dunno. Ohtani was absolutely on pace to be a 1 or 2 in the MVP race, he’s just missed too much time. Having him any higher than 4 seems irresponsible.
It’s a pity. A healthy Ohtani would have made the Ohtani/PCA race one of the best MVP races in the last 25 years.
If you compare ohtani mvp last year to pca this year, who you got?
PCA. I’m not super impressed with hitting specific milestones, so Ohtani hitting 50⁄50 is cool but not significantly different than if he had hit 49⁄49 to me. I understand why voters might not feel that way.
Ohtani 2025 was better than PCA 2026 most of the season but people forget that Ohtani had some pretty notable slumps, especially at the end of the season. Ohtani “peaked” higher than PCA did but that guy has been a machine all season long. I’d give him the nod for being the better player over 162.
Put some respect on the 🐐
Where’s the disrespect?
No one said anything disrespectful to Barry Bonds.
Brice Turang erasure. Also IDK how Shohei is still number 2 he hasn’t pitched in forever and has only played 130 games
Because he was really fucking good when he was playing. He is still number 2 in fwar though Alvarez and Witt will. Probably catch him.
Pitching, absolutely. Hitting, though, he’s only been a Top 5 NL hitter for June. Other than that he’s been only slightly above average. June is the only month he even led his team in fWAR hitting.
Why does it matter when he pitched? Do any other MVP candidates have 30 homers and 85 innings pitched with a 1.79 ERA?
without pitching
But you cant say without pitching. He did pitch. That is defense. 95 SOs. Thats not true about PCA either and you know it. hes got 45 homers and is going to have 40 steals while leading the league in runs scored. A half season of CF and those numbers is still plenty to win MVP.
You’re confused that the guy with a .900 OPS in 130 games and a sub 2 ERA in a full season releivers worth of innings, which when put together are worth more than most players full seasons in terms of workload is number 2 in MVP voting? Strange take.
Brice Turang doesn’t even sniff anything If you take away his defense, he’d just be an .800 OPS DH with less than 20 homers, which is practically worthless. Do you hear yourself or nah?
Also yes, he isn’t the best player if you combine his war, which is why he is the MVP-2, thanks for pointing that out.
Because before the injuries, Shohei was putting up a hell of a challenge to PCA. They were going band-for-band for a good while.
Yeah we got robbed of one of the best MVP races ever, PCA would have legitimately challenged a fully healthy two way Ohtani. It’s a shame we didn’t get to see the race. And I mean legitimately challenge, not some phony Cal Raleigh thing where he was so far behind Judge that it wasn’t a race at all, and anyone with a brain knew Judge was the clear MVP. Thankfully 1 more voter had a brain than not last year so Judge won it in the end.
so far behind Judge that it wasn’t a race at all, and anyone with a brain knew Judge was the clear MVP.
17 votes vs. 13 votes is a race, nearly half of all voters thought Cal should be MVP
Yes, but everyone with a brain knew Judge was in a different universe that year and that it shouldn’t have been a race, Cal didnt even touch his gravitational pull. voters without brains can technically make it a race if they desire, but not in the fans brains (the fans that have them). With the year PCA is having, which is aready miles better than Cals 2025, it would have been a 100% legitimate undeniable race across the board, voters and fans with and without brains, not some voter manufactured shit show that was the 2025 AL MVP voting.
Crazy that Bobby is still 3rd when he’s clearly been down the last two years. Goes to show how freakin good he is
trying to be unbiased as possible - does ohtani still deserve #2?
Can Schlittler is climbing
Didn’t realize Elly was having such a good season. Glad to hear, he’s fun to watch
I know he would never win, but i feel like Alonso should be mentioned
He’s 9th in WAR for AL position players. Include pitchers and he doesn’t really have a case for a high finish
he has a higher WAR than Rice, who is shown in the graphic
He shouldn’t be high either
agreed
The yankees have 2 mvp caliber candidates and judge missed 89 games.
Wonder what the season wouldve looked like if he was healthy.
PCA deserves it. Nothing but MAGIC this season.
Elly a finalist, Sal Stewart probably rookie of the year and Chase Burns had Cy Young consideration… and yet the Reds can’t field a competitive team
Alonso better get some votes. Extremely similar hitting splits to Alvarez, Witt, and Rice.
He’s also an Oriole so he is the only reason we have been remotely involved in the playoff race. Rest of the team is cheeks. We’d have won maybe 60-65 games without Pete.
How is Alonso similar to Alvarez offensively? That’s not remotely true
Alvarez: 98 runs 40 homers 99 RBI
Alonso: 94 runs 40 homers 108 RBI
Yeah, not similar at all lol
Alvarez has better slash stats, but they are basically equal in counting.
I didn’t say the same I just meant similar production.
The slash line is far more important in judging an individual player than RBI
I was just saying Alonso has similar enough stats to those guys that he should get votes.
Relax lol
Mis has been more valuable than Ohtani this season imo but PCA should be the unanimous MVP
Ohtani shouldn’t be on any MVP list. Not because he’s not the best in the game. But because he’s completely unnecessary given that roster. PCA’s the only viable option imo. And Schwarber deserves love too cause he’s an absolute monster and a class act.
How good someone’s teammates are is irrelevant to the award
Shouldnt be
Why? It’s not a team award
This debate has been ongoing for decades. I dont have the answer. I look at ‘value’ relative to whats around you. There’s a reason MVP candidates dont come from the worst teams.
Pete Alonso should be getting MVP down ballet votes. How he’s not top 5 is ridiculous.
He’s 9th in WAR for AL position players. Why would he be top 5 in MVP, especially when pitchers are included?
Unfortunately he plays for the O’s. He ain’t getting shit unless we as a team perform out of our minds.
It’s been incredible watching him this year. After his early slump he’s been the model of consistency and clutch we paid for.
The only way he’s not winning is if he gets caught betting on games within the next week
O-VER-RATED! /s
38 of 38 first place votes but some fans still think PCA is being hyped without reason.
Edit: Enjoying the delicious tears of Brewers and Dodgers fans.
it’s just brewers fans who cares
And they’re here, lol. Every downvote is tasty tear.
The Wisconsin education system has failed many
Bobby Witt isn’t even top 30 in wRC+ in the AL.
He is the second best defender in the world and an elite baserunner at the second most valuable defensive position in the league. He has been the most valuable shortstop on both sides of the ball.
I like Witt. Those tools aren’t remotely weighted the same though. Yordan is going to win this unanimously and he hasn’t baserun or played an inning of defense since the Taft administration.
Witt has more bWAR and fWAR than Yordan btw. Not that I think Yordan shouldn’t win, but it’s not a wRC+ competition
I agree it shouldn’t be. But it’s been 20 years since someone with a wRC+ in that range has won MVP.
I genuinely think Schittler should be #2 with a case at #1. At least above Caminero for sure.
Least homer Yankees fan.
Says the fan of the team who’s fans gave the Ernie Clement the most votes in the AS game
Every year Yankee fans get called “homers” for rooting for the guy who leads the league in WAR to win MVP.
Those hypocrites pick and choose
I don’t see how its that crazy for someone to think that. But sure.
How can Shohei even be considered if he’s been a DH for the majority of the season and is currently “injured”? Imo you shouldn’t be eligible for MVP if all you do is bat every couple innings
He’s clearly been the second best player in the NL. It’s just a distant second
PCA fluke season ends soon!
I don’t want any pitchers to get MVP votes this seasons, except for Shohei.
The NFL and NBA would never have an MVP winner be on a non playoff team. MLB on the other hand
Well yeah it makes a little more sense in the NFL and NBA since a quarterback or NBA superstar has much more of an impact on their team’s success than any individual baseball player.
Every NBA team with a pulse makes the playoffs. NFL MVP is the best QB award and best QB team never misses the playoffs
MLB is rational. The award is for the best player
All of you are misinterpreting my statement. I in no way am criticizing the process. And I certainly don’t need it mansplained to me. Simply making an observation. Anyway, good for Alvarez