After a career-defining season, Chicago Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong was named the winner of the 2026 NL Most Valuable Player award in a television segment on MLB Network Thursday. He also swept the voting of the award, receiving all 30 first place votes and 420 total points. The voting process concluded before the end of the regular season by the Baseball Writers Association of America.
Unanimous Winner
Crow-Armstrong was unanimously elected to receive the award, making him the fourth straight player to receive the NL MVP in that fashion. In 2024 and 2025, Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter and pitcher Shohei Ohtani won unanimously in both seasons. Before that, Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. received the honor unanimously in 2023. Up to that point, there had never been back-back unanimous winners of the NL MVP.
From receiving the award, Pete Crow-Armstrong became the 11th unanimous winner in the NL and 25th overall in MVP voting. The list of recipients includes Barry Bonds (2002), Albert Pujols (2009) and Bryce Harper (2015). Crow-Armstrong is also the first Cubs player to be elected unanimously. He is the ninth player in Cubs franchise history to win the award. Crow-Armstrong is the first recipient in 10 years with Kris Bryant being the last winner in 2016.
Outside of Crow-Armstrong, Ohtani received 26 second place votes to finish with 264 total points. Up to this season, he had come in first or second place in voting in the last six MVP elections. Milwaukee Brewers infielder Brice Turang, on the other hand, received five third place votes to finish with 190 total points.
Remarkable Season
Coming off his fifth season with the Cubs, Crow-Armstrong continued to improve on his skill set. He took it a step further in 2026, recording 175 hits, 107 RBI and a career best 45 home runs in a career high 162 appearances. He ended the season slashing .280/.372/.570 on a career high .943 OPS and had a 9.8 WAR.
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Pete Crow-Armstrong used his speed and athleticism to record 41 stolen bases which was the second best in the NL. He also joined an exclusive list of players to hit more than 40 homers and steal more than 40 bases in a season. He is the first player in Cubs franchise history to achieve that milestone. In addition to the NL MVP, he has won the Platinum Glove, the Rawlings Gold Glove award twice and received the 2026 Major League Player of the Year honors.
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