Browsing: Shohei

While dropping jaws as a two-way star, Los Angeles Dodgers phenom Shohei Ohtani has been described as supernatural, alien-like and nonhuman.

He is a human to his dog Decoy, though. And Ohtani showed the Dutch Kooikerhondje some love Thursday night after becoming the second player in MLB history to win more than three MVP awards.

Advertisement

Once Ohtani heard his name called, joining Barry Bonds in that rare air, he humorously leaned in to kiss Decoy, not his wife Mamiko.

In the lead up to the announcement on MLB Network, Ohtani was seen with his head down petting Decoy while fellow NL MVP finalists Kyle Shwarber, a designated hitter for the Philadelphia Phillies, and Juan Soto, an outfielder for the New York Mets, anxiously awaited the news.

Ohtani, who smashed 55 home runs and posted a 2.87 ERA in limited outings on the mound during the regular season, has now won the World Series and NL MVP in each of his first two seasons with the Dodgers.

Advertisement

He previously won the AL MVP twice with the Los Angeles Angels. Ohtani is the first player to ever win both AL and NL MVP multiple times. He’s won all four honors unanimously.

This isn’t the first time Decoy has starred during an MLB awards show. He rose to fame in 2023 when he was seen by Ohtani’s side as the standout slugger and pitcher won AL MVP for the second time. Ohtani even gave Decoy a high five after the announcement that year.

This time, Ohtani gave his beloved pup a kiss.

Source link

• 

  David SchoenfieldNov 12, 2025, 07:00 AM ET

  Close

  • Covers MLB for ESPN.com
  • Former deputy editor of Page 2
  • Been with ESPN.com since 1995

In the fifth year of his utter domination of Major League Baseball, Shohei Ohtani only padded an already astounding résumé.

He hit 55 home runs and led the National League in runs scored, slugging percentage, OPS and total bases; he returned to pitching and posted a 2.87 ERA in 47 innings with 62 strikeouts; he became the first player to hit three home runs and strike out 10 batters in one game (and it came in a playoff game); he went to bat nine times in a World Series game and got on base nine times (tying a World Series record with four extra-base hits along the way); and he was the starting pitcher in Game 7 of the World Series, which his Los Angeles Dodgers won to become the first repeat champion in 25 years.

Ohtani won his fourth MVP award Thursday — and all four have been unanimous selections, making Ohtani the only player with more than one such selection. (Only Barry Bonds has won more than three.)

The latest MVP honor caps a remarkable past five seasons for Ohtani, four of which he has spent as both one of the best hitters in the game and one of the best pitchers. The postseason run was a reminder, as Jeff Passan wrote after Ohtani’s three-homer game in the NLCS, “that one of the greatest athletes in the world, and the most talented baseball player ever, is playing right now, doing unfathomable things, redefining the game in real time.”

It raises the question: How does Ohtani’s five-year stretch compare to the best five-year runs in MLB history? Is this the greatest ever? This is an impossible question to answer, but let’s explore it by picking one player to represent each decade and see how he compares to Ohtani. While we’ll focus on overall value, there are other pieces, like championships and achievements, that are part of the equation.

We’ll start with Ohtani and then go back to the 1900s and go decade by decade. The point here isn’t so much to declare the “winner” but to look at baseball’s best side by side, so consider the arguments we lay out and make your own proclamation.

Shohei Ohtani, DH/SP, 2021-25: 45.2 WAR

Five-year average: .285 BA, 171 OPS+, 47 HR, 104 RBIs, 115 R, 27 SB, 6.0 WAR

Four-year pitching average: 9-4, 2.84 ERA, 119 IP, 87 H, 151 SO, 151 ERA+, 3.8 WAR

Led league: 3x WAR, 2x R, 2x HR, 3x OPS

Achievements:3x MVP, 2x WS champ, 50/50 season

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: +8.4% (Aaron Judge)

The case for Ohtani: He does it all. He hits for power, including back-to-back 50-homer seasons. He steals bases, notching the first 50/50 season in MLB history in 2024. He hits for average in a low-average era, ranking second in the NL in 2024 and fourth in the American League in 2023.

Editor’s Picks

2 Related

Over the past five seasons, he’s second in the majors in home runs, first in runs, fourth in RBIs, second in OPS, first in total bases and seventh in stolen bases. Oh, and he has done a little pitching on the side, going 35-17 with a 2.84 ERA. Despite not pitching at all in 2024 and not throwing that many innings in 2025, he’s still 14th in pitching WAR since 2021. All told, his offense accounts for 30.2 WAR and his pitching for 15.2 WAR. Throw in two World Series titles and four MVP awards to go with the two-way performance and we’ve never seen anything like it.

The case against Ohtani: As we’ll see, Ohtani’s five-year WAR total — while obviously outstanding — is not at the top of this list. It’s not even in the top five. Value is value, no extra credit here just because he has been outstanding on both sides of the ball. And looming over his shoulder is this fact: Judge has had the higher WAR in three of the five seasons:

2022: 10.8 to 9.6
2024: 10.8 to 9.2
2025: 9.7 to 7.7

Can you have the greatest five-year stretch of all time when Judge is right there putting up his own historic seasons? Ohtani has been more valuable overall — and, of course, has won the titles that have eluded Judge — but it’s close.

OK, now let’s turn back the clock …

Honus Wagner, SS, 1905-1909: 49.2 WAR

Five-year average: .349 BA, 183 OPS+, 6 HR, 93 RBIs, 101 R, 52 SB, 9.8 WAR

Led league: 5x WAR, 4x BA, 4x 2B, 2x RBI, 2x SB, 4x OPS

Achievements:1x WS champ

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: +40.6% (Nap Lajoie)

The case for Wagner over Ohtani: Wagner might be better known today for his ultra-rare baseball card that has sold for as high as $7.25 million than his exploits on the field, but he dominated the NL in the first decade of the 20th century, retroactively leading NL position players in WAR all five seasons. The second-best position player in the majors was way behind Wagner, and only pitcher Christy Mathewson came within even 10 WAR of Wagner’s value over this stretch. His 1908 season is one of the all-time best: He hit .354 with a .957 OPS when the league average was .239 with a .605 OPS.

The case for Ohtani over Wagner: Wagner was fast, powerful and a well-conditioned athlete (he was an early proponent of weightlifting, with this five-year run starting when he was 31 years old), but the dead ball era was more than 100 years ago and it’s difficult to know how his game might transition to different eras of baseball. We don’t want to go too deep into making timeline adjustments, but that has to be a consideration in Ohtani’s favor.

Ty Cobb, CF, 1909-1913: 47.7 WAR

Five-year average: .396 BA, 198 OPS+, 7 HR, 95 RBIs, 112 R, 67 SB, 9.5 WAR

Led league: 3x WAR, 5x BA, 2x RBIs, 2x SB, 4x OPS

Achievements: 1x Triple Crown, 1x MVP

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: +7.2% (Eddie Collins)

The case for Cobb over Ohtani: The man hit nearly .400 over this five-year period — including .419 in 1911 and .409 in 1912 — that featured mushy baseballs, pitchers throwing legal spitballs, and baggy wool uniforms soaked in dirt and sweat. As Joe Posnanski put it, “As a ballplayer, Cobb was his own species. … He was not just the dominant player [of his era]. He was the only one who mattered.” Cobb won a Triple Crown in 1909, and while home runs were scarce in the dead ball era, he still belted 79 extra-base hits in 1911, including 47 doubles and 24 triples. He mastered the science of small ball — at the plate and on the bases. In the first Hall of Fame election in 1936, it was Cobb — and not Babe Ruth or Wagner — who received the most votes.

The case for Ohtani over Cobb: As great as Cobb was, Collins wasn’t far behind in value in this stretch, and pitcher Walter Johnson was actually ahead. Joe Jackson put up similar offensive numbers in 1911 (.408) and 1912 (.395). Starting in 1912, Tris Speaker would lead the AL in WAR in three of the next five seasons, as he was close to Cobb as a hitter and better in the field. In other words, Cobb’s achievements weren’t quite singular, even if he did it in a singular, brilliant, aggressive fashion that was never forgotten.

Babe Ruth, RF/LF, 1920-24: 56.6 WAR

Five-year average: .370 BA, 229 OPS+, 47 HR, 131 RBIs, 145 R, .777 SLG, 11.3 WAR

Led league: 4x WAR, 1x BA, 4x HR, 3x RBIs, 5x OPS

Achievements: 1x MVP, 1x WS champ

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: +14.3% (Rogers Hornsby)

Best of the 2025 World Series

We’ve got it all covered as the Dodgers beat the Blue Jays to win a second consecutive title.

Behind the scenes of L.A.’s repeat title »
Game 7 win cements Dodgers’ dynasty »
The rise of Toronto’s Trey Yesavage »
What it’s like watching Vlad Jr. dominate »
Inside an epic 18-inning Game 3 thriller »

The case for Ruth over Ohtani:You knew the Babe was going to pop up here, and his best five-year stretch begins with his first season with the New York Yankees, when he increased his own single-season home run record from 29 to 54 (and then to 59 in 1921). His 56.6 WAR during this five-year span is the highest of anyone on the list and well above Ohtani’s totals, achieved even with a down year — for him — in 1922, when he played 110 games and was worth 6.4 WAR after getting suspended for an unauthorized offseason barnstorming tour. He returned in 1923 to produce the highest single-season WAR for a position player on Baseball-Reference at 14.1, a year he hit .393 with 41 home runs. Let’s see Ohtani post a 14-WAR season.

The case for Ohtani over Ruth: There’s no doubt Ruth changed the game, from small ball to power ball, but even Ruth gave up pitching after less than two full seasons of doing both in 1918 and 1919. He would lead all players in WAR in every five-year stretch starting from 1920-24 through 1929-33, except 1921-25, when Hornsby topped him (50.1 to 48.2). Indeed, as great as Ruth was, Hornsby wasn’t too far behind as a hitter. From 1920 to 1924, Hornsby hit .395 with a 199 OPS+; from 1921 to 1925, he hit .402 with a 204 OPS+. Ruth also went just 1-2 in World Series in this stretch, so Ohtani has the edge in championships.

Joe DiMaggio, CF, 1937-41: 38.7 WAR

Five-year average: .350 BA, 168 OPS+, 34 HR, 138 RBIs, 121 R, .638 SLG, 7.7 WAR

Led league: 3x WAR, 2x BA, 1x HR

Achievements: 2x MVP, 4x WS champ, 56-game hit streak

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: +16.9% (Johnny Mize)

The case for DiMaggio over Ohtani: DiMaggio was the ultimate winner: In his 13 years in the majors, he played in 10 World Series, winning nine times, including going 4-for-4 in this stretch. In these five years, he finished second, sixth, first, third and first, respectively, in the MVP voting. He had more home runs than strikeouts over all five seasons (169 home runs, 121 strikeouts) and holds perhaps the greatest — or at least the most famous — record in baseball history, his 56-game hitting streak in 1941.

The case for Ohtani over DiMaggio: When you dig into the advanced metrics, DiMaggio’s value just isn’t quite as impressive as some other players here. This was a high offensive era, so DiMaggio’s adjusted OPS topped out at 185 in 1941 — a figure Ohtani matched in 2023, beat in 2024 and just missed in 2025. DiMaggio’s total WAR is also lowest on the list. The Yankees won all four World Series in this period, but DiMaggio didn’t hit particularly well at .278/.316/.403 with 10 RBIs in 18 games. Oh, and while Ohtani stole 59 bases in 2024, DiMaggio stole 30 in his entire career.

Ted Williams, LF, 1941-48: 49.3 WAR

Five-year average:.362 BA, 212 OPS+, 34 HR, 124 RBIs, 133 R, .508 OBP, 9.9 WAR

Led league:4x WAR, 4x BA, 3x HR, 2x RBIs, 5x OPS

Achievements: 1x MVP, 2x Triple Crown

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: +51.2% (DiMaggio)

The case for Williams over Ohtani:Williams’ peak was interrupted by three missing seasons while he served in World War II (as was the case with DiMaggio), but we’ll give him credit for his five consecutive seasons played when he towered over the sport, at least in value: an incredible 50% higher WAR than DiMaggio over the five seasons in question, the largest gap on the list. In 1941, he became the last player to hit .400. While he won just one MVP award in these years, he finished second three times and third in the other year — not winning it in either Triple Crown season or the year he hit .406. Williams famously said he wanted to be known as the greatest hitter who ever lived. He might have been.

The case for Ohtani over Williams: No rings. That was the knock against Williams while he was active, especially in comparison to DiMaggio, as Williams played in just one World Series in 1946. (The Boston Red Sox lost in seven games.) He was indifferent in the field and on the basepaths. While Ohtani has become one of the most riveting players in the sport — even having his dog “throw” out the first pitch at a Dodgers game — Williams never connected with the fans in the same way. “Though we thumped, wept, and chanted ‘We want Ted’ for minutes after he hid in the dugout, he did not come back,” John Updike wrote in his essay on Williams’ final home game. “Gods do not answer letters.”

Mickey Mantle, CF, 1954-58: 47.7 WAR

Five-year average: .325 BA, 191 OPS+, 38 HR, 104 RBIs, 126 R, .451 OBP, 9.5 WAR

Led league: 4x WAR, 1x BA, 3x HR, 2x OPS

Achievements:2x MVP, 1x Triple Crown, 2x WS champ

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: +4.1% (Willie Mays)

Stars who ruled the 2025 MLB playoffs

From playoff breakouts to World Series heroes, here’s a full squad of players who shined brightest under the postseason lights. All-October team »

The case for Mantle over Ohtani:If part of the answer to our question is some undefinable combination of popularity, adoration and just pure presence, then Mantle rises to the top of the list. Until his knees went bad, he could run like the wind, regarded as the fastest player in the game. Nobody hit longer home runs — and he did it from both sides of the plate. “No man in the history of baseball had as much power as Mickey Mantle,” Billy Martin, his teammate on the Yankees, once said. Mantle’s Triple Crown season in 1956 — .353, 52 home runs, 130 RBIs, 11.3 WAR — is one of the greatest seasons ever. He matched that with another 11.3-WAR season in 1957, when he hit .363. He had a .935 OPS in 23 World Series games in this period.

The case for Ohtani over Mantle: Well, Billy Martin never saw Ohtani hit home runs — like the home run he hit in the National League Championship Series that became the eighth to ever leave Dodger Stadium. If only we could add Mantle’s 1961 season (10.5 WAR) to his 1955-58 peak, rather than using 1954 (6.9 WAR) or 1959 (6.6 WAR). Of course, even then, Mays would still be right there alongside him in value. The Yankees went 2-2 in the World Series in this period, losing twice when Mantle missed games with injuries. That speaks to his value but also to his inability to always be at his best.

Willie Mays, CF, 1962-66: 52.3 WAR

Five-year average: .304 BA, 169 OPS+, 45 HR, 114 RBIs, 117 R, .601 SLG, 10.5 WAR

Led league:5x WAR, 3x HR, 2x SLG, 2x OPS

Achievements:1x MVP, 5x Gold Glove

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: +30% (Henry Aaron)

The case for Mays over Ohtani: Whoa … 30% better than Aaron? 53% more valuable than Frank Robinson? 64% more valuable than Roberto Clemente? And this is when they were all still in their peak years. Yes, Willie could ball. This stretch includes four 10-WAR seasons, and while Mays won just one MVP award, the voters could have given it to him every season. Amazingly, this also covers Mays’ age-31-to-age-35 seasons, a testament to his conditioning and durability. “I think I was the best ballplayer I ever saw,” Mays himself would say after he retired. He might be right. His five-year WAR trails only Ruth on this list and easily beats Ohtani.

The case for Ohtani over Mays: There’s no denying Mays’ all-around brilliance, but even adjusted for the low offensive environment of this period, he wasn’t as valuable a hitter as some others here and is basically equal to Ohtani: Mays created about 267 more runs than the average hitter while Ohtani is at 260. Does Mays’ defense in center field trump Ohtani’s pitching? You could also argue the biggest star in the game over these five seasons was Sandy Koufax, who won three Cy Young Awards and two World Series. (Mays’ Giants played in one in this period and lost.)

Joe Morgan, 2B, 1972-76: 47.8 WAR

Five-year average: .303 BA, 163 OPS+, 22 HR, 85 RBIs, 113 R, 62 SB, 9.6 WAR

Led league:4x WAR, 4x OBP, 2x OPS

Achievements: 2x MVP, 4x Gold Glove, 2x WS champ

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: +36.6% (Bobby Grich)

The case for Morgan over Ohtani: Perhaps the most underrated all-time great player, Morgan excelled in secondary skills: He averaged 118 walks per season in this period, stole bases at a high percentage and won four Gold Gloves. His power numbers don’t jump out, but this was a low-offense period, with the NL averaging just 4.06 runs per game from 1972 to 1976. (The MLB average in 2025 was 4.45.) Morgan’s 1.020 OPS in 1976 was more than 100 points higher than the next guy. It all added up to an enormously valuable player who was head and shoulders above the No. 2 player in WAR over this period. Oh, and like the Dodgers, the Cincinnati Reds won back-to-back World Series in 1975 and 1976, Morgan’s two MVP years.

The case for Ohtani over Morgan: OK, we understand now that Morgan was underappreciated in his own time and his skills more subtle than obvious, but it’s also true that in the 1970s, his Reds teammates Johnny Bench and Pete Rose were regarded as the bigger stars. In terms of raw numbers, Ohtani wins in a landslide: Morgan hit 108 home runs and drove in 427 runs compared with 233 and 522 for Ohtani (and Ohtani’s adjusted OPS was also higher). Again, it’s a question of whether Morgan’s defense and position was more valuable than Ohtani’s pitching.

Mike Schmidt, 3B, 1977-81: 39.5 WAR

Five-year average: .274 BA, 157 OPS+, 37 HR, 101 RBIs, 100 R, 7.9 WAR

Led league: 3x WAR, 2x HR, 2x OPS

Achievements:2x MVP, 5x Gold Glove, 1x WS champ

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: +15.2% (George Brett)

Way-too-early 2026 MLB Power Rankings

The Dodgers just won the 2025 World Series — and we’re already looking ahead to next year. Who’s No. 1? »

The case for Schmidt over Ohtani: As Bill James once wrote of Schmidt, “True, he didn’t hit .320. If he had, he would be the greatest player who ever lived.” Schmidt was a 2020s-type player — a Three True Outcomes slugger — trapped in an era of big, multipurpose stadiums. If he had played in a different era, like today’s with smaller parks, he would have had a bunch of 50-home run seasons. (He led the NL eight times in home runs over his career.) Schmidt also drew 100 walks a year, won 10 Gold Gloves and is regarded as the greatest third baseman of all time.

The case for Ohtani over Schmidt: Ohtani’s total value easily eclipsed Schmidt’s run. Indeed, it was difficult coming up with a player to represent the 1980s. Rickey Henderson spread out his three best seasons (1980, 1985, 1990). Wade Boggs had a great five-year stretch from 1985 to 1989, when he averaged 8.4 WAR, but nobody would call Boggs the player of the decade. As for Schmidt, his best season would have been 1981 — when he hit .316, the only time he hit .300, and his second of back-to-back MVP years — but the strike interrupted the season, and he played just 102 games. If we could pick Schmidt’s five best nonconsecutive seasons, he’d have a better argument.

Barry Bonds, LF, 1990-94: 42.9 WAR

Five-year average:.310 BA, 185 OPS+, 35 HR, 107 RBIs, 105 R, 38 SB, 8.6 WAR

Led league:4x WAR, 1x HR, 1x RBIs, 4x OPS

Achievements: 3x MVP, 5x Gold Glove

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: 26.9% (Ken Griffey Jr.)

The case for 1990s Bonds over Ohtani: Let’s call this Bonds I. For most of the decade, the argument was Bonds vs. Griffey. Well, even Griffey’s five best seasons from the 1990s (41.6 WAR) don’t quite match Bonds’ five-year run from 1990 to 1994, which includes the strike-shortened 1994 season. Bonds won three MVP awards (and probably should have won a fourth in 1991) and posted OPS+ figures over 200 in 1992 and 1993 — which Ohtani has never done. This Bonds was an annual Gold Glove winner and one of the best baserunners in the game (stealing as many as 52 bases in 1990).

The case for Ohtani over 1990s Bonds: As good as Bonds was, and as terrific as his all-around game was, Ohtani’s still had more value. And we have to factor in Ohtani’s two titles here versus Bonds’ zero. The Pittsburgh Pirates made the playoffs three straight years from 1990 to 1992, and Bonds completely flopped, hitting .191/.337/.265 with six RBIs in 20 games. Case closed.

Barry Bonds, 2000-04: 51.1 WAR

Five-year average: .339 BA, 241 OPS+, 52 HR, 109 RBIs, 123 R, 10.2 WAR

Led league: 4x WAR, 1x HR, 4x OPS

Achievements: 4x MVP, record 73 HRs

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: +17.5% (Alex Rodriguez)

The case for 2000s Bonds over Ohtani: And now we have Bonds II, when he put up a five-year run at the plate that neither Ruth nor Williams even matched. In 2001, Bonds mashed 73 home runs with an 0.863 slugging percentage. The next year, he hit .370 with a .582 OBP. He “slumped” all the way to .341 with a 1.278 OPS in 2003 and then hit .362 with 232 walks, a .609 (!) OBP and 1.422 OPS in 2004. The numbers don’t seem real. His combined WAR, including 11.9 in 2001, 11.7 in 2002 and 10.6 in 2004, is third behind Ruth and Mays and still significantly ahead of Ohtani. Bonds is the only player to win four straight MVP awards — oh, and he finished second the year he didn’t win.

The case for Ohtani over 2000s Bonds: Well, Bonds didn’t pitch. His defense and baserunning had declined. He still didn’t win — although the San Francisco Giants did reach the World Series in 2002 and Bonds had one of the best postseasons ever. And he certainly couldn’t match Ohtani in popularity.

Five-year average: .310 BA, 173 OPS+, 33 HR, 96 RBIs, 116 R, 28 SB, 9.4 WAR

Led league: 5x WAR, 4x R, 1x RBIs, 1x SB, 1x OPS

Achievements: 2x MVP

WAR percentage over No. 2 player in span: +44.9% (Robinson Cano)

Top 50 MLB free agents

How much will the biggest stars get paid this winter? Kiley McDaniel breaks down the 2025-26 free agent class. Rankings, contract projections »

The case for Trout over Ohtani: Young Trout was truly something, deservedly drawing comparisons to the best players of all time, starting with a 10.5-WAR season as a rookie in 2012 and another 10.4-WAR season in 2016 (both figures slightly higher than Ohtani’s best of 10.0). He won his two MVPs in this stretch and finished second in the voting the other three years. He hit for average, drew walks, stole bases and played solid defense. (And when the ball got a little livelier later in the decade, his OPS would climb even higher.) His five-year WAR crushes Cano, the No. 2 position player, and also beats out Ohtani’s five-year total. While the Los Angeles Angels made the playoffs only in 2014, Trout was still unquestionably viewed as the best player in the game, a title he would hold down all the way through 2019, when he captured his third MVP award. Alas, injuries would mar his career after that.

The case for Ohtani over Trout: Ohtani left the Angels, Trout stayed. The two World Series titles add a vital element to Ohtani’s legacy and stardom that Trout will always lack. As good as Trout was, it’s also probably fair to say he lacked the magnetism of Ohtani (or the charisma of Griffey, to whom he was so often compared early on).

Source link

The MLB offseason continues to get underway with awards honoring the best players of the 2025 season. The latest honor to be handed out was the Silver Slugger, with the National League winners announced in a FanSided stream on Thursday.

The Silver Slugger is given to the best offensive players of the year, as determined by managers and coaches throughout the league. This year, some of the top names in the NL were among the recipients, including Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher/designated hitter Shohei Ohtani, New York Mets outfielder Juan Soto and Chicago Cubs outfielder Kyle Tucker.

Advertisement

The Dodgers, fresh off back-to-back World Series championships, took home the team award for the second straight year. But of the Dodgers nominated, only Ohtani took home an individual award, despite four members of the reigning champions earning a nomination.

The Arizona Diamondbacks were the most-awarded team in the NL, with three DBacks — second baseman Ketel Marte, shortstop Geraldo Perdomo and outfielder Corbin Carroll — beating out competitive categories for individual awards. And in a bit of a twist, the Colorado Rockies will walk away with a bit of hardware after a rough 2025 season, with Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman earning his first Silver Slugger award.

In addition, five of the 10 players were also honored with their first Silver Slugger. Surprisingly, this includes New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso, who has five All-Star nods but had always struggled to beat out Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman for the first base Silver Slugger — until this year.

The American League winners will be announced on Friday, with big names like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Aaron Judge and Cal Raleigh among those vying for the award.

Advertisement

2025 National League Silver Slugger winners

*denotes first-time winner

First baseman: Pete Alonso, New York Mets*

Second baseman: Ketel Marte, Arizona Diamondbacks

Third baseman: Manny Machado, San Diego Padres

Shortstop: Geraldo Perdomo, Arizona Diamondbacks*

Outfielders: Juan Soto, New York Mets; Corbin Carroll, Arizona Diamondbacks*; Kyle Tucker, Chicago Cubs

Catcher: Hunter Goodman, Colorado Rockies*

Designated hitter: Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers

Utility: Alec Burleson, St. Louis Cardinals*

Team award: Los Angeles Dodgers

Source link

Major League Baseball has unveiled the National League Silver Slugger winners from the 2025 season.

The group is headlined by many familiar names, including Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto.

Here is the full list of winners as revealed Thursday.

Catcher:Hunter Goodman (Colorado Rockies)

First Base: Pete Alonso (New York Mets)

Second Base:Ketel Marte (Arizona Diamondbacks)

Shortstop:Geraldo Perdomo (Arizona Diamondbacks)

Third Base:Manny Machado (San Diego Padres)

Outfield:Juan Soto (New York Mets), Corbin Carroll (Arizona Diamondbacks), Kyle Tucker (Chicago Cubs)

Designated Hitter:Shohei Ohtani (Los Angeles Dodgers)

Utility:Alec Burleson (St. Louis Cardinals)

Team:Los Angeles Dodgers

The battle everyone was keeping an eye on between Ohtani and Kyle Schwarber at DH in the National League never felt all that close.

Ohtani was better in all three traditional triple-slash categories (.282/.392/.622), as well as weighted on-base average(.418) and OPS+ (179).

Schwarber was hardly a slouch with a .240/.365/.563 slash line, .391 weighted on-base average and 150 OPS+. He also hit one more homer than Ohtani (56 to 55) and drove in more runs (132 to 102).

By virtually every metric, though, Ohtani was the superior offensive player and a deserving winner of the award for the third consecutive year and fourth time in his career.

The most compelling race was at first base in the NL. Pete Alonso, Freddie Freeman, and Matt Olson were all within 1.8 points of each other in FanGraphs’ offensive value metric.

Alonso led the group in that category and home runs (37), but Freeman set the pace in batting average (.295) and tied Olson in on-base percentage (.366).

There was not going to be a wrong choice from that group, but Alonso ultimately received the edge in the final voting as the standard for offensive production at first base in 2025.

Catcher:Will Smith (Los Angeles Dodgers), Hunter Goodman (Colorado Rockies), William Contreras (Milwaukee Brewers)

First Base: Pete Alonso (New York Mets), Freddie Freeman (Los Angeles Dodgers), Matt Olson (Atlanta Braves)

Second Base:Brice Turang (Milwaukee Brewers), Ketel Marte (Arizona Diamondbacks), Nico Hoerner (Chicago Cubs)

Shortstop:Geraldo Perdomo (Arizona Diamondbacks), Francisco Lindor (New York Mets), Trea Turner (Philadelphia Phillies)

Third Base:Manny Machado (San Diego Padres), Max Muncy (Los Angeles Dodgers), Austin Riley (Atlanta Braves), Matt Chapman (San Francisco Giants)

Outfield:Juan Soto (New York Mets), Corbin Carroll (Arizona Diamondbacks), Kyle Stowers (Miami Marlins), James Wood (Washington Nationals), Pete Crow-Armstrong (Chicago Cubs); Kyle Tucker (Chicago Cubs)

Designated Hitter:Shohei Ohtani (Los Angeles Dodgers), Kyle Schwarber (Philadelphia Phillies), Christian Yelich (Milwaukee Brewers)

Utility:Alec Burleson (St. Louis Cardinals); Jake Cronenworth (San Diego Padres); Brendan Donovan (St. Louis Cardinals)

Team:Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers

Source link

It’s award season for baseball, and this year, Topps has doubled the potential payouts for collectors.

That’s because in addition to their already hugely popular MVP Buyback program (offering store credits of $20 and up for cards of the AL and NL MVP winners from the Topps Chrome set), this year they introduced the “Red RC” program, offering FanCash (good for use on the Topps and Fanatics family of websites) of $100 and up for cards of the AL and NL Rookies of the Year with a red “rookie card” logo on their cards in Bowman and Bowman Chrome.

There’s no limit to how many cards you can trade in, so depending on how much you collect, there might be a whole lot of buyback funds in your future.

Here’s what you need to know this year for each of the programs.

Topps MVP Buyback

Participating Topps retailers will offer $20 in store credit for every base card you send in of the AL and NL MVP winners, along with incremental amounts for base parallels, from $40 all the way up to $200.

In the NL, the odds favor Shohei Ohtani winning his third-consecutive MVP award. So if you have this base chrome card (or any of its parallels), you might want to put them aside:

There were also incredibly rare MVP Buyback cards sent in from previous years that were stamped and inserted into packs of 2025 Topps Update. If Ohtani wins MVP for the third year in a row, you can also send in those cards for buyback credit of anywhere from $600 to $1,200.

Other NL MVP finalists include the Phillies’ Kyle Schwarber and the Mets’ Juan Soto, so stash those cards for potential buybacks, too.

Now on to the AL race, in which most odds favor Aaron Judge winning his second-consecutive MVP award. Cal Raleigh is also a heavy favorite, but there’s a huge wrinkle here—Raleigh doesn’t have a base card in 2025 Topps Chrome.

So what happens if Raleigh wins MVP? According to Topps, it would be Raleigh’s base card in the upcoming 2025 Topps Chrome Update — not likely to be released until early December — that would be the buyback card.

But if Judge does come away with the award for the second year in a row, you’ll want to gather any chrome variation of this card:

Stamped versions of previous Judge buyback cards were also randomly inserted in 2025 Topps Chrome, so if Judge wins his second MVP award in a row, you can trade those in for buyback credit of anywhere from $400 to $1,000.

Aside from Judge and Raleigh, the other AL MVP finalist is Jose Ramirez of the Guardians.

Topps Red RC Buyback

Introduced just this year for Bowman and Bowman Chrome, the Red RC chase is a bit more difficult than the MVP Buyback, as not every card of the contenders carries the red version of the “RC” logo.

But the floor is also higher, as each Red RC buyback card carries a FanCash value of $100. That goes for the ceiling, too. If you’re a gambler, you can hold onto those Red RC cards and potentially earn even more FanCash if those players go on to win Cy Young Awards or MVP Awards ($300 to $700) or even enter the Hall of Fame ($1,000).

In the AL, Nick Kurtz is the overwhelming favorite to take home Rookie of the Year honors. That means this is the card that you’ll need to earn FanCash (notice the red “RC” at the top left):

Other AL finalists include Kurtz’s A’s teammate Jacob Wilson and Roman Anthony of the Red Sox.

The NL race is a bit closer. The favorites are the Braves’ Drake Baldwin and the Cubs’ Cade Horton, both of whom have Red RCs in 2025 Bowman Chrome. The third NL finalist is Caleb Durbin of the Brewers.

Another thing to keep in mind: According to Topps, Red RC cards are good in any year, not just the year they come out. So, if you pulled any 2025 Red RC cards of Tsung-Che Cheng, Logan Henderson, Zac Veen or Nick Yorke, you might want to set them aside for 2026, as those are the only names from the 60-player 2025 Bowman and Bowman Chrome checklists who will maintain their rookie status heading into next season, according to Baseball America research. If any of them win Rookie of the Year in 2026, their 2025 Red RC cards would still be eligible for the $100 credits.

How To Get Your Buyback Credit

It’s important to note that there are different forms of “buyback” and different redemption processes for each of the two programs.

For the MVP Buyback program, once you have your cards gathered, you’ll need to fill out a form from the Topps website. You can find the forms and more details on the Topps MVP Buyback program here, including a full list of participating retailers (both national companies and local card shops).

From there, you either mail in the form and the cards to the company of your choice or bring it in to your local card shop to receive the credit. That credit is the same no matter where you go, so the choice is yours.

As for the Red RC program, if you choose to take the FanCash this year (rather than waiting to see what other honors might be in those players’ futures for even more possible FanCash down the line), you’ll need to make sure you have an account on Fanatics Collect, which is the Topps and Fanatics sister site that mostly functions as a single-card marketplace.

From there, you’ll be able to fill in the proper forms to send in your Red RC redemption cards to get $100 per card in FanCash that can be used on any of the Fanatics family of sites, including Topps.

You can find more info on the Red RC redemption program here and the MVP Buyback program here.

Source link

MLB announced the finalists for its major individual awards Monday night, and, as expected, Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh and Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge headline the lists as finalists for AL MVP.

Raleigh and Judge are joined by Guardians third baseman José Ramírez as finalists for the award, but the hotly contested race is expected to come down to the New York and Seattle sluggers.

Advertisement

Raleigh broke out in 2025 with a season for the ages as he headlined a home run chase with 60 for the ninth-most by a player in a single season in MLB history. Raleigh also led the AL with 125 RBI while slashing a career-best .247/.359/.589 with 14 stolen bases. His performance paced Seattle to an AL West title and a trip to the ALCS.

Who will win a hotly contested AL MVP race between Aaron Judge and Cal Raleigh?

(Steph Chambers via Getty Images)

Judge, meanwhile, continued his tear as one of the best hitters in baseball history in a bid for his third MVP and second straight. Judge finished third in baseball and second in the AL to Raleigh with 53 home runs. He also led the AL with a .331/.457/.688 slash line, 137 runs scored and 124 walks in addition to tallying 114 RBI and 12 stolen bases.

The Yankees made the playoffs as a wild card after losing a tiebreaker with the Blue Jays atop the AL East. The Blue Jays then eliminated the Yankees in the divisional round.

Advertisement

In the NL, two-way Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber and Mets outfielder Juan Soto are the MVP finalists. Ohtani is the favorite to win his fourth career MVP trophy after another remarkable season at the plate and an abbreviated but strong showing on the mound after returning from Tommy John surgery.

Here are the 3 finalists for each of the MLB individual awards announced Monday night:

AL MVP

Aaron Judge, Yankees
Cal Raleigh, Mariners
José Ramírez, Guardians

NL MVP

Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers
Kyle Schwarber, Phillies
Juan Soto, Mets

AL CY Young

Hunter Brown, Astros
Garrett Crochet, Red Sox
Tarik Skubal, Tigers

Advertisement

NL Cy Young

Cristopher Sánchez, Phillies
Paul Skenes, Pirates
Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Dodgers

AL Rookie of the Year

Roman Anthony, Red Sox
Nick Kurtz, A’s
Jacob Wilson, A’s

NL Rookie of the Year

Drake Baldwin, Braves
Caleb Durbin, Brewers
Cade Horton, Cubs

AL Manager of the Year

John Schneider, Blue Jays
Stephen Vogt, Guardians
Dan Wilson, Mariners

NL Manager of the Year

Terry Francona, Reds
Pat Murphy, Brewers
Rob Thomson, Phillies

Source link

TORONTO — Shohei Ohtani will not be part of the Dodgers pitching plans in Game 6, manager Dave Roberts said during his pregame media availability on Friday.

As for a potential Game 7 on Saturday night? That remains a distinct possibility — if the Dodgers can get there.

“Right now, we’re just focused on today,†Roberts said. “Shohei’s not a part of the pitching plan today. When we win this game tonight, then we can kind of circle up and have that conversation for tomorrow.â€

He became the first starter in 24 years to pitch consecutive complete games in the postseason, so itâ€s possible Roberts wouldnâ€t need to go to his bullpen at all. But if he does, there are obvious questions in the middle innings, leading to closer Roki Sasaki.

“[Yamamoto] is the No. 1 option, and we’re going to kind of watch how he’s throwing the baseball,†Roberts said. “This is a must-win game. But, yeah, there’s a few [relievers] that I’m going to go to tonight.â€

Ohtani is apparently not one of them. As for Saturday, the Game 7 decision is a complex one. The Dodgers would have Tyler Glasnow lined up to start the game — though Roberts noted that Glasnow would be available out of the bullpen for Game 6. Ohtani, however, comes with a different set of rules as a two-way player.

When Ohtani starts a game on the mound and is replaced, he is able to remain in the game as the designated hitter. But if he were to start the game as the DH and then pitch in relief, the Dodgers would lose the DH once Ohtani’s pitching appearance ends.

So itâ€s possible the Dodgers would save Ohtani only for a circumstance in which they knew he could finish the game. Or they could choose to use him as an opener and plan for a shorter start on three days’ rest.

Ohtani has only pitched on three days’ rest once in his big league career — in April 2023, when the first of those starts was cut short by a rain delay after 31 pitches. (For what itâ€s worth, Ohtani struck out 11 Royals over seven scoreless innings three days later.) Aside from that outing, however, Ohtani has never even pitched on four days’ rest, as his usage on the mound has been closely monitored, given his unique skill set.

As for a potential relief outing, he made a particularly memorable one to close out the 2023 World Baseball Classic for Team Japan. The Dodgers havenâ€t mapped out the logistics of that just yet — asking Ohtani to pitch in relief, while also handling hitting duties.

“I’m not going to have an answer for that one tonight,†Roberts said. “Give me a night to think about that one.â€

Source link

The two-way player rule works differently for starters than relievers. When Ohtani starts a game on the mound and is replaced, he is able to remain in the game as the designated hitter. But if he were to start the game as the DH and then pitch in relief, the Dodgers would lose the DH once Ohtani’s pitching appearance ends.

It’s a calculated decision for the Dodgers, who would have to feel confident in Ohtani being able to finish a game on the mound in order to send him out there. The alternative option would be to use him as an opener, similar to the role he served earlier this year as he eased back into pitching.

The team is mulling over these possibilities, as well as the prospect of shifting Ohtani to the outfield after a relief appearance — which would keep him in the lineup. The latter does not seem likely to happen, but anything is on the table in an effort to keep the Dodgers’ season alive.

“We’ll kind of talk through whatever is the best,” manager Dave Roberts said Thursday. “If we get to that point, we’ll see. But he’s not going to play the outfield tomorrow, I do know that. But if we get to Game 7, we’ll have a good discussion about everything.”

Roberts and Ohtani have yet to discuss the specifics around his availability to pitch in the rest of the World Series, but immediately after toeing the rubber for the first time in the Fall Classic, Ohtani was already thinking about the next time he could get on the mound.

“It depends on how long the series goes, but if thereâ€s a possibility Iâ€ll be needed in any of the games, I want to be ready,” Ohtani said in Japanese after Game 4 on Tuesday night. “There could be games like yesterdayâ€s that go into extra innings and donâ€t get decided for a while, so I want to stay prepared to pitch at any time.â€

The bullpen volatility the Dodgers weathered during the regular season has carried into the postseason. Roki Sasaki has been the only consistent arm in the ‘pen, and constructing a bridge to the closer has been a particular issue during the World Series.

They saw it on Wednesday, when Edgardo Henriquez came off two scoreless innings in Game 3 but could not retire any of the three batters he faced in Game 5. Blake Treinen, who had either given up a run or allowed inherited runners to score in three straight outings, pitched a clean inning. There has been little predictability in what the Dodgers can get out of several of their arms on a given night.

With the World Series set to be decided in Toronto, the Dodgers only have so many games remaining. Ohtani is not going to make another traditional start. There’s nothing to be lost, only gained, by sending him to the mound one more time if the situation calls for it.

“Obviously, when you’re facing elimination, then you’ve got to have those conversations,” Roberts said. “So whatever it takes for us to win tomorrow. … We’re going to do whatever we can to put our best foot forward on the run-prevention side and then on the creation side in scoring runs, too.”

Source link

• 

  Alden GonzalezOct 29, 2025, 01:37 AM ET

  Close

  ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the L.A. Rams for ESPN from 2016 to 2018 and the L.A. Angels for MLB.com from 2012 to 2016.

LOS ANGELES — After Shohei Ohtani mowed through the middle of the Toronto Blue Jays’ lineup in the top of the sixth Tuesday, Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior approached him in the dugout and asked how many innings he had left, conscious of the potential toll from the previous game. Ohtani answered affirmatively. “Three more innings,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts recalled him saying, perhaps half-jokingly.

Two batters later, though, he was finished.

One night after setting a postseason record by reaching base nine times in an 18-inning marathon, Ohtani performed as a two-way player in Game 4 of the World Series and was, well, mortal, going hitless in the batter’s box and getting tagged with the loss on the mound.

Ohtani, speaking through an interpreter after a 6-2 loss that evened this best-of-seven series at two games apiece, said he was “able to get on the mound in pretty good condition.” He received intravenous fluid to address leg cramps moments after the Dodgers came away from a 6-hour, 39-minute Game 3 with a walk-off victory, got to bed by roughly 2 a.m. PT and received what he called “quality sleep.” But it didn’t translate into a show-stopping performance, which, given what he did in the pennant clincher — three home runs as a hitter, six scoreless innings and 10 strikeouts as a pitcher — has somehow become the expectation.

“Every time he steps up, I expect great things to happen,” Roberts said, “and maybe unfairly.”

Ohtani drew a walk to start the game, reaching base for the 11th consecutive time but struck out in his next two plate appearances and later grounded out. Through his first six innings as a pitcher, he struck out six batters and gave up only a two-run homer to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. — on a sweeper that leaked out over the plate, which he called “a regrettable pitch.”

Editor’s Picks

2 Related

When the seventh inning began, the Dodgers trailed by only a run and Ohtani had thrown 90 pitches. Three pitches later, after a single by Daulton Varsho and a 101.7-mph double by Ernie Clement, Roberts turned to his bullpen. The Blue Jays went on to score four runs with Anthony Banda and Blake Treinen on the mound.

“I wanted to go seven,” Ohtani said, “and it was regrettable that I wasn’t able to finish that inning.”

Ohtani’s first postseason as a starting pitcher is officially over now, ending with a 2-1 record, a 3.50 ERA and 25 strikeouts against five walks in 18 innings. If he pitches again, it would be out of the bullpen in Game 6 or a potential Game 7, something he told Japanese reporters he was willing to do.

Ohtani threw his fastball mostly in the 96 to 97 mph range but was able to reach for 98 and 99 mph when he needed to on two-strike counts. Rather than consistently try to throw into the triple digits, Ohtani seemed conscious about picking his spots. On offense, Roberts complimented Ohtani’s “intent” and attributed his lack of success to the quality of the pitches he saw, not his exertions from the night before. The leg cramps that manifested in Monday’s 11th inning did not appear to be an issue. Ohtani credited his catcher, Will Smith, for taking down all 18 innings on Monday night and then catching another nine Tuesday. Overall, he seemed grateful for an incredibly active 27-hour stretch.

“Although we did lose the game,” Ohtani said, “I thought I had a productive experience being able to experience this situation.”

Source link

LOS ANGELES — He cannot be stopped, but he must be.

Shohei Ohtani has taken over the World Series. He is everything and he is everywhere.

He doubled, then he homered. He doubled again, then he homered again. The Blue Jays†only option was to duck for cover, close their eyes and cover their ears. By the time Ohtani walked up to the dish for his fourth consecutive intentional walk in the 15th, the umpire was already looking into the Blue Jays†dugout, waiting for John Schneiderâ€s four fingers. Ohtani reached base nine times in Torontoâ€s 6-5, walk-off loss in Game 3, a postseason record.

Coming into the World Series, the Blue Jays needed an answer for Ohtani. He cannot be silenced, only survived. The Blue Jays just keep throwing ideas at the wall and relievers at Ohtani, but he keeps winning. Heâ€s a talent so transcendent that the very threat of him seeps into the innings where he doesnâ€t touch a bat. Heâ€s seven hitters away … five away … three away …

Want to walk him? Say hello to Mookie Betts and big Freddie Freeman, the man who launched the walk-off shot to straightaway center field just before midnight local time. Itâ€s like dodging a bullet to get hit by a bus.

“It’s not the easiest thing in the world to just walk him and face Mookie and Freddie,†Schneider said. “So every situation is different. You got to really execute at a high level against him. I think the first couple games we did. I know he hit the homer off [Braydon Fisher] in Game 1, but I think that we executed pretty well minus today, and he’s a great player and took some really good swings today.â€

Itâ€s the Barry Bonds dilemma. Itâ€s the Aaron Judge dilemma. How can the Blue Jays survive Ohtani? How can they muffle his impact on every corner of the game?

“I get it,†said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “He’s the best player on the planet, he was on the heels of a huge offensive night and John smelled that. He wasn’t going to let Shohei beat him at all, obviously, and even when nobody was on base, [he was] putting him on to make the other guys beat him.â€

The Blue Jays†first move has been Mason Fluharty, the funky lefty who is a “good matchup†for Ohtani, as much as you can stretch those words. If youâ€re going to attack Ohtani with a lefty, your best bet is a lefty with a lower arm slot, creating more cross-body action moving away from Ohtani in the box.

But what happens when your first move doesnâ€t work? In Game 1, Fluharty jogged in from the bullpen and froze Ohtani. This time, though, Ohtani shot an RBI double into the left-center gap. This man is many things, but rarely is he an opposite-field hitter. That was his first opposite-field hit since Sept. 20, a home run against the Giants.

Just when you think youâ€ve seen it all from Ohtani, he changes colors again, the chameleon who can be anyone and do anything. Down in the bullpen, Brendon Little was watching, knowing that as one of the other lefties, the phone could ring for him eventually. In the 17th it did, and Little walked Ohtani on four straight pitches.

“When he showed that tonight, it really made us adjust our game plan,†Little said. “Going into that situation, I didnâ€t want to give him anything that he could drive.â€

What do the Blue Jays do now? Heck, this guy is even pitching in Game 4. For the first time in the history of the sport, we will ask ourselves, “Is tonightâ€s starting pitcher tired from reaching base nine times last night?â€

Thereâ€s something to the idea of limiting how many times in a row a hitter sees an opposing reliever. Ohtani has seen Fluharty twice now and Little once. The only other lefty, Eric Lauer, gave the Blue Jays 4 2/3 spectacular, scoreless innings, but that surely means heâ€s unavailable in Game 4. Is it time for a righty like Louis Varland? What about an aggressive, early move with closer Jeff Hoffman?

Thereâ€s one guaranteed way to make it out alive: holding up four fingers. If the bases are empty, itâ€s a no-brainer, even with Betts batting behind him.

This will decide the Series, though. The Blue Jays needed an answer in Game 1, but go into Game 4 without one. The Series still orbits around Ohtani. So, once again, Schneider was asked if those four fingers are what we should expect now?

Schneider paused, sitting at the podium after 18 innings, dozens of missed opportunities and a crushing loss.

Source link