A month ago, the NL MVP race appeared to be a foregone conclusion. Shohei Ohtani was on pace for a fourth straight trophy
Then everything changed due to Ohtani’s injury and now it could be the tightest awards race baseball has seen for some time
Shohei Ohtani will not make his return to the mound on Sunday as was previously anticipated, manager Dave Roberts confirmed.
Ohtani will not pitch Tuesday either and the Dodgers don’t have a target date on when he will make his pitching return.
For more: https://t.co/TPE4m1TwbE pic.twitter.com/sbVyEjuHeF
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) August 29, 2026
Ohtani’s Injury
Shohei Ohtani and Pete Crow-Armstrong have turned the NL MVP race into a historic two-man race.
This one turned about as fast as an MVP race has ever turned, with Ohtani a huge favorite on the board just a few weeks ago and Crow-Armstrong a distant second choice, still viewed as a big long shot.
MLB’s own Players Poll confirmed the shift on August 25, when Crow-Armstrong topped the ballot for the first time all season and Ohtani dropped to second with 154 points and eight first-place votes.
PCA may have just snatched the MVP from Ohtani 😭 pic.twitter.com/e8WUnVTnng
— Sleeper (@SleeperHQ) August 29, 2026
Why Crow-Armstrong is Rising
Since Ohtani’s final mound start on July 3, Crow Armstrong has been on fire, hitting his way to a 1.014 OPS, 14 homers, and a 171 wRC plus.
His fielding in center field has also been worth a league-leading 24 Fielding Run Value. He also leads MLB outright in Wins Above Replacement, and the Cubs have ridden his production to a 74-54 record and a firm spot in the playoff picture.
Ohtani isn’t going quietly
The decisive shift is a knee injury that has kept Ohtani off the mound since July 3, stripping away the two-way dominance that normally makes him unbeatable in MVP voting.
Even as a hitter by himself he’s been terrific, hitting. 927 OPS, 30 homers and 80 RBIs, tied with Crow-Armstrong for the NL lead in OPS and 285.
He threw a bullpen session recently, and getting back on the mound for even a few starts down the stretch could close that gap.
What is left
With about a month left to play, this is shaping up to be one of the tightest MVP races in recent memory, and a strong finish from either player could swing it.
