Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez named AL MVP
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Jesus Linares, Pelota Brava editor
- November 13, 2026
Yordan Alvarez becomes fourth Cuban, third Astro to win MVP Award
It was a given for Yordan Alvarez.
Considering the spectacular season that Astros All-Star Yordan Alvarez had, it was practically a given that he would receive the most important distinction in baseball, the Most Valuable Player Award.
The Houston Astros’ designated hitter was a unanimous selection as the American League Most Valuable Player. He became only the 14th unanimous AL MVP in voting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.
Alvarez had an extraordinary year in which he was mostly healthy after injuries derailed his 2025 campaign. But 2026 was not only a year of health. It also represented the best season of his career, dethroning perennial MVP candidate Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees as the most feared slugger in the AL.
“I feel amazing, super excited about this,” said Alvarez, who was joined by his wife, two children, parents and siblings during the announcement Thursday night. “In the last week I’ve been pretty restless. Knowing that I can celebrate this with my family, it’s super special.”
Fourth Cuban MVP
Alvarez became only the fourth Cuban-born player in MLB history to win the award. He follows Jose Abreu (2020 White Sox), Jose Canseco (1988 A’s) and Zoilo Versalles, who won the MVP in 1965 with the Minnesota Twins.
En Español: Sin sorpresas el MVP de la liga americana para Yordan Álvarez
Alvarez was the unanimous selection after he was named first on all 30 votes, two from each AL city. Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Junior Caminero finished second. Caminero received 27 second-place votes and three for third place. Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. finished third.
Witt received two second-place votes and 11 for third. He also received five fourth-place votes, three apiece for fifth and sixth place and one seventh, two eighth, one ninth and two 10th place votes.
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Isaac Paredes of the Astros and Cade Smith of the Guardians each received one 10th place vote, rounding out the 21 players who received spots on the 10-person AL MVP ballot. Alvarez was the AL batting champion with a .316 batting average. He spent most of the season within range of Triple Crown.
“I just wanted a chance to get into professional baseball,” he said. “Years ago, I wasn’t thinking about winning an MVP. But over time it became a reality, and look where I am celebrating an MVP.”
Special Astros trio
Yordan Alvarez signed as an amateur free agent with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2016, but he never played a game for that franchise. He was traded to the Astros, and the rest is history. Alvarez’s offensive dominance helped lead the Astros to the AL West title. He finished the season as the AL leader in walks, OBP, Slugging, OPS, OPS+, Total Bases and intentional walks.
He became just the third Astro to win a league MVP, following 1994 NL MVP Jeff Bagwell and 2017 AL MVP Jose Altuve. The left-handed-hitting Alvarez acknowledged the people who have been supporting him in the process that led him to the award.
“Especially my dad and my brother, we’ve had a long road to get to this point,” he said. “There’s a lot of work behind this award.”
During the postseason, Alvarez said he hired a personal trainer who accompanied him during the 2026 season.
“A lot of things changed,” Yordan said.
And boy, did they change.
Jesus Linares
Pelota Brava editor
Jesus Linares is a baseball writer and columnist at Pelota Brava, a member of the Our Esquina Network. Linares, a member of the Baseball Writers Association of America, has covered baseball since 2006 throughout Venezuela, the Caribbean and Major League Baseball.
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