Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers won the National League Most Valuable Player award on Thursday, according to the Baseball Writers' Association of America. It was the fifth MVP award of his career and his fourth in a row.

The result added another year of two-way dominance to his record. Ohtani is the only player in modern history to rank among the elite as both a hitter and a starting pitcher.

The Japanese star previously won the American League award with the Los Angeles Angels in 2021 and 2023. He then won the National League honour in 2024 and 2025 after joining the Dodgers on a 10-year, $700m contract. Each of those four previous awards was decided by unanimous first-place votes from the BBWAA electorate. The association's voters are two writers from each league city.

Only Barry Bonds has won more MVP awards, with seven. Bonds is also the only other player to win four in succession, collecting the National League award every year from 2001 to 2004 with the San Francisco Giants. The BBWAA announcement, broadcast on MLB Network, closed baseball's annual awards week. The American League winner was named on the same programme.

The award arrived as baseball faces its most uncertain winter in decades. The collective bargaining agreement between Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association expires on December 1. Owners have pressed for a salary cap, a proposal the union has long rejected. Ohtani's record contract, with most of its value deferred, has become a reference point in the dispute over how clubs spend.

Ohtani spent 2026 in his fullest two-way season since his elbow surgery in 2023, pitching regularly in the Dodgers' rotation while serving as their leadoff hitter. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has repeatedly described him as the most talented player he has seen. Ohtani turns 33 next season, and he remains under contract with Los Angeles until 2033.