Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong wins NL MVP after historic 40-40 season
Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong became the first player ever to win an MVP and a Gold Glove and have 40 home runs and 40 stolen bases in the same season, as he was named the 2026 National League MVP on Thursday.
In a unanimous vote, Crow-Armstrong beat out Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani and Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Brice Turang.
With 45 home runs and 41 stolen bases, Crow-Armstrong became the seventh member of the elite 40-40 club, and only the second member of that club to also win a Gold Glove, alongside Barry Bonds, who also accomplished the feat in 1996 with the San Francisco Giants.
He's the only player in Major League Baseball history to combine those two feats with an MVP season. Bonds finished fifth in NL MVP voting in 1996, when San Diego Padres third baseman Ken Caminiti was the unanimous winner.
Crow-Armstrong finished the regular season tied with Kyle Schwarber with the most home runs in the majors (45), and ranked 2nd in slugging percentage (.570), 2nd in OPS (.942), 4th in RBI (107), tied for 4th in stolen bases (41), 5th in triples (8), and tied for 6th in hits (175).
Crow-Armstrong posted a .280/.372/.570 slash line for the Cubs, while his defense was worth an MLB-best +23 runs, according to FanGraphs' defensive runs metric. He also led the majors in Statcast's Outs Above Average (26) and Fielding Run Value (26) metrics on defense.
Crow-Armstrong told MLB Network before he was named MVP that he always has taken pride in his defense.
"I always loved playing defense. The outfielder's glove got stuck in my hand at a very early age, and I never left center field," he said. "I think it is, as far as baseball goes, it is a part of me, and I think there's always ways to change the game with the glove on your hand if I'm not able to swing it like I want to."
After signing a six-year, $115 million contract extension in the offseason, Crow-Armstrong overcame a slow offensive start to accomplish his historic 40-40 feat. Crow-Armstrong had only 7 home runs and 26 RBI in March, April and May, before heating up in June with 11 home runs and 20 RBI. He went on a tear again in August, adding 14 home runs and 28 RBI.
He credited the team's coaching staff with being patient and giving him a chance to turn things around during his early season slump.
"I'm always willing to do whatever it takes to win," he said. "We were always just willing to make the necessary adjustment, whether it was a little funky and scary or not. We just kind of kept working towards something that was repeatable, and something that really accomplished everything from power, but also just getting on base a lot."
The last Cubs player named National League MVP was third baseman Kris Bryant during the Cubs' 2016 World Series run. Seven other Cubs players have been named MVP: shortstop Ernie Banks (twice in 1958 and 1959), right fielder Sammy Sosa (1998), right fielder Andre Dawson (1987), second baseman Ryne Sandberg (1984), left fielder Hank Sauer (1952), first baseman Phil Cavarretta (1945), and catcher Gabby Hartnett (1935).
