MLB MVPs: Crow-Armstrong and Alvarez win unanimous votes

Pete Crow-Armstrong received all 30 first-place votes for the National League’s Most Valuable Player award, while Yordan Alvarez won his first American League MVP. Both selections were unanimous.

Crow-Armstrong is the Cubs’ first MVP since Kris Bryant in 2016. Alvarez returned to play 158 games after a wrist fracture and sprained ankle limited him to 48 in 2025.

The Baseball Writers’ Association of America awards an MVP to one player in each league. Voting takes place before the postseason, and the results are announced after the World Series.

Two writers per league city vote on ten-place ballots. First place receives 14 points, second receives nine, and the points then descend to one for tenth.

How the winners performed

Crow-Armstrong batted .280 with 45 home runs and 41 stolen bases. He also led both leagues with 10.6 fWAR, a measure that estimates a player’s overall contribution compared with a readily available replacement. He also won a Gold Glove for his defense.

Crow-Armstrong began the season near the bottom of the batting order. Cubs manager Craig Counsell said he moved him to the leadoff spot by mid-May because the offense was struggling. Batting first, Crow-Armstrong hit .300 with a .398 on-base percentage. He drew 83 walks for the season, up from 29 the previous year.

Alvarez led the American League with a .316 batting average and finished second in home runs with 42 and runs batted in with 106. He drew a Major League Baseball-leading 109 walks and posted a .432 on-base percentage. Alvarez had previously won Rookie of the Year in 2019.

A unanimous awards season

The two MVP results completed the first season in which both MVP winners and both Cy Young pitching award winners were unanimous, ESPN said. The New York Yankees’ Cam Schlittler and the Brewers’ Jacob Misiorowski won the American and National League Cy Young awards, respectively.