Shohei Ohtani vs. Pete Crow-Armstrong NL MVP Race Voted on by MLB Players in ESPN Poll

After winning unanimous NL MVP awards in his first two seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Shohei Ohtani has work to do if he wants to make it three straight based on the results of a player vote.

In a survey of 21 players conducted by ESPN's Jesse Rogers, Chicago Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong has a comfortable 15-4 lead over Ohtani as the preferred choice for NL MVP.

Two respondents chose to split the award between the two of them.

This is the first time in years that Ohtani isn't head and shoulders the favorite to win the award. He has been named MVP in three consecutive seasons dating back to his final year with the Los Angeles Angels in 2023.

Since the 2021 season, Ohtani has won four MVP awards in five years. The lone outlier was 2022 when Aaron Judge set a new AL record with 62 home runs, even though Ohtani hit 34 homers and had a 2.33 ERA in 166 innings.

The main reason there is a race between Ohtani and Crow-Armstrong right now is because the Dodgers superstar hasn't been able to pitch for more than a month. His last outing on the mound came on July 3.

Even though Ohtani remains arguably the most dominant hitter in MLB, being limited to DH does hinder his value. However, he still has the benefit of 85.2 innings and a 1.79 ERA to help his case even if he doesn't pitch in a game again.

There does seem to be an out of sight, out of mind feeling because Ohtani hasn't pitched in so long based on comments from the players who voted for Crow-Armstrong.

"One plays elite defense," Athletics pitcher Mark Leiter Jr. told Rogers. "The other doesn't play the field. If you take Ohtani out of the rotation, they don't miss a beat. And if you take him out of the lineup, I still don't think they miss a beat."

Cleveland Guardians first baseman Rhys Hoskins also brought up Ohtani not pitching as a reason for the Cubs star:

"In the true sense of the word, the guy that plays every day probably makes more of an impact on the team every single day. That's how I would weigh it. If Ohtani is pitching, there's not much room. That's the reality. Anyone that's watched PCA or the Cubs over the last two months, this guy is the best player on the field every time he's on the field."

There were several players who responded to Rogers and opted to wait for the rest of the season to play out before making a pick.

Cincinnati Reds pitcher Emilio Pagan brought up the 2022 AL MVP race between Ohtani and Judge as a comparison point:

"I had a debate like this with Rocco Baldelli when I was with Minnesota. It was Ohtani and Judge and at the time. Judge was like the best defensive right fielder in the game. Rocco said you have to take the defensive WAR that Judge provides and compare that to the pitching WAR that Ohtani provides. And then if the offense is even, that's how you can do it. So I'd go PCA. If Ohtani starts pitching again and goes 5-7 innings a start down the stretch, the conversation looks different. If he doesn't pitch again in a real starter's role, then I'd vote for PCA still."

Crow-Armstrong doesn't have the two-way narrative, but he does get a boost from becoming an elite offensive player this season while maintaining his status as arguably the best defensive centerfielder in MLB.

Using advanced metrics including FanGraphs' defensive value, fielding run value and outs above average, Crow-Armstrong ranks first across the board at one of the most important positions on the field.

Combine that with Crow-Armstrong hitting .281/.379/.550 with 30 home runs and 31 stolen bases for a Cubs team that is a safe bet to make the playoffs with a five game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies for the No. 1 wild card spot in the NL, it's easy to make a narrative case for him.

Last year's AL MVP vote between Judge and Cal Raleigh was separated by four first-place votes and 20 total points.

There have been 14 MVP votes in MLB history decided by 10 points or fewer, with the most recent coming in 2017 when Giancarlo Stanton beat Joey Votto by two points.

With just over one month remaining in the 2026 regular season, Ohtani and Crow-Armstrong look like they are running neck and neck for the NL MVP award.