Crow-Armstrong, Alvarez Win 2026 MLB Awards
Pete Crow-Armstrong claimed the National League Hank Aaron Award and Yordan Alvarez took the Outstanding Designated Hitter Award.
Updated on Nov. 12, 2026 in Baseball
MLB announced Pete Crow-Armstrong as the 2026 National League Hank Aaron Award winner and Yordan Alvarez as the 2026 Outstanding Designated Hitter Award winner. The announcements ended Shohei Ohtani's three-year Hank Aaron Award streak and his run of Outstanding Designated Hitter Awards since 2021.
Why it matters
The results mark the first Hank Aaron Award for Crow-Armstrong and the first Outstanding Designated Hitter Award for Alvarez, shifting recognition away from Ohtani. Ohtani also did not make the 2026 All-MLB Team, underscoring the change in league-wide honors.
Crow-Armstrong posted a .280/.372/.570 slash line with 45 home runs, 107 RBI and 41 stolen bases across 162 games in 2026. Alvarez recorded a .316/.432/.601 slash line with 42 home runs and 106 RBI, and the source does not give vote totals for either award.
The players
Pete Crow-Armstrong
Pete Crow-Armstrong is a Chicago Cubs center fielder who won the 2026 National League Hank Aaron Award for the first time in his career.
Yordan Alvarez
Yordan Alvarez is a Houston Astros designated hitter who won the 2026 Outstanding Designated Hitter Award for the first time in his career.
Shohei Ohtani
Shohei Ohtani is a two-way star who had won the Hank Aaron Award three years in a row and the Outstanding Designated Hitter Award every season since 2021.
The details
The 2026 All-MLB Teams and the Hank Aaron and Outstanding Designated Hitter award winners were announced during the MLB Awards show at the Cosmopolitan Las Vegas on Wednesday, November 11, 2026. Crow-Armstrong is the fourth player in Cubs franchise history to win the Hank Aaron Award, while Alvarez is the first Outstanding Designated Hitter Award winner in Astros franchise history.
Timeline
- 2020: Marcell Ozuna became the first National League player to win the Outstanding Designated Hitter Award.
- 2021: Shohei Ohtani began his streak of Outstanding Designated Hitter Award wins.
- 2022: The National League fully adopted the designated hitter.
- 2026 season: Crow-Armstrong and Alvarez posted the statistics cited for their awards.
- Wednesday, November 11, 2026: The MLB Awards show announced the Hank Aaron and Outstanding Designated Hitter winners.
Season Trajectory
The results end Shohei Ohtani's run of Outstanding Designated Hitter Awards that began in 2021, shifting the award landscape after the National League fully adopted the designated hitter in 2022. Ohtani's exclusion from the 2026 All-MLB Team further signals a changing balance of league recognition.
Fantasy managers tracking designated hitters should note Alvarez's 2026 production, including 42 home runs and 106 RBI. Ohtani's exclusion from the 2026 All-MLB Team and loss of his award streak changes how the award race is viewed heading into future seasons.
The takeaway
Recognition in MLB is shifting, with Pete Crow-Armstrong and Yordan Alvarez earning top honors after a season of strong power and run production. Watch how future award voting reflects this changing balance among the league's best hitters.
Further reading
For more on the league's honors, see the Baseball section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Dodger Blue.
