The Major League Baseball Players Association on Tuesday announced the top three vote-getters for each of its annual Player Choice Awards, with Dodgers Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw in the mix for honors.
Ohtani is in the top three in voting for MLB Player of the Year, along with New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge and Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh. Ohtani won Player of the Year in 2021 while with the Angels, and was also among the top three in each of the last five seasons. Judge won the award in both 2022 and 2024.
The top three in player voting for National League Outstanding Player are Ohtani along with Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber and New York Mets outfielder Juan Soto. Ohtani won NL Player of the Year in 2024 with the Dodgers, and also won AL Player of the Year in 2021 and 2023 with the Angels. His three Player of the Year awards were also seasons Ohtani won the MVP award.
Clayton Kershaw is among the top four vote-getters for NL Comeback Player, following up a seven-start 2024 season and November surgeries on his foot and knee to post a 3.36 ERA and 3.75 xERA with an 11-2 record in 2025, and was second on the Dodgers in both starts (22) and innings (112 2/3). Others up for the award are Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. as well as Brewers teammates Brandon Woodrfuff and Christian Yelich. There are four players listed here because of a tie for third place.
Kershaw has won several Players Choice Awards in his career, including three NL Outstanding Pitcher awards in 2011, 2013, and 2014, mirroring his Cy Young Award seasons, as well as MLB Player of the Year in 2014 and Marvin Miller Man of the Year in 2014, the latter an award given annually to the player “whose leadership most inspires others to higher levels of achievement.”
Yoshinobu Yamamoto was not among the top three vote-getters for NL Outstanding pitcher, though Freddy Peralta of the Brewers was, along with Pirates ace Paul Skenes and Phillies left-hander Cristopher Sánchez. Yamamoto and Peralta each had excellent seasons:
- Peralta: 2.70 ERA, 3.47 xERA, 176 2/3 IP, 204 strikeouts, 66 walks, 21 HR, 17-6
- Yamamoto: 2.49 ERA, 2.73 xERA, 173 2/3 IP, 201 strikeouts, 59 walks, 14 HR, 12-8
Those two pitchers face off in Tuesday night’s Game 2 of the NLCS at American Family Field in Milwaukee.
Voted on by major league players, the Players Choice Awards winners will be announced on October 29, the day of Game 5 of the World Series.
