Cubs, Astros players sweep unanimous MVP honors

Pete Crow-Armstrong of the Chicago Cubs and Yordan Alvarez of the Houston Astros became the unanimous winners of the Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player awards on Thursday night.

The voting marked the first season in which both league MVPs and both Cy Young Award winners were unanimous. Cam Schlittler of the New York Yankees won the American League Cy Young unanimously on Wednesday, while Jacob Misiorowski of the Milwaukee Brewers took the National League honor by the same margin.

Crow-Armstrong, 24, collected all 30 first-place votes in the National League. He finished ahead of Shohei Ohtani and Brice Turang of the Milwaukee Brewers. The center fielder posted a .280 average with 45 home runs and 41 stolen bases. He also led both leagues with 10.6 fWAR and won a Gold Glove.

Crow-Armstrong is the 13th player in Chicago franchise history to receive the honor. He is the first to win it since Kris Bryant in 2016. Manager Craig Counsell moved the fourth-year player to the leadoff spot in mid-May because the team needed an offensive spark. Crow-Armstrong hit .300 with a .398 on-base percentage while batting first. He drew 83 walks this season, up from 29 the previous year.

Alvarez, 29, topped Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays and Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals in American League voting. The designated hitter hit a league-best .316 and finished second in home runs with 42 and RBIs with 106. He drew a major league-high 109 walks for a .432 on-base percentage.

Alvarez appeared in 158 games for the playoff-bound Astros. This followed a 2025 season in which he played only 48 games due to a wrist fracture and a sprained ankle. He was also named the American League Comeback Player of the Year on Wednesday.

The 29-year-old is the 31st player in history to win both the MVP and a Rookie of the Year award. He won the latter in 2019. He joins Jeff Bagwell and Jose Altuve as the third Astro to claim the MVP.