Now that we’ve officially reached June, more than one-third of the 2026 MLB season is now behind us. As we edge towards the All-Star Break in July, we’ve already started seeing organizational social media teams posting about All-Star Game voting. The natural next step there is to begin having conversations about award races.

So, while it may be a bit too early for me to make my award predictions, I’m going to do it anyway.

AL MVP

Let’s make things a little complicated to start: the AL MVP race was made infinitely more complicated by the fact that reigning MVP Aaron Judge will miss significant time with injury. There are several players who are having very good seasons. Nick Kurtz tied a franchise record with a 48-game on-base streak earlier this season. Ben Rice is becoming a star in the Bronx, picking up the slack in lieu of Judge’s absence. Yandy Diaz is having another All-Star caliber year for a Tampa Bay team that somewhat surprisingly finds itself playing like a contender. But none of these guys feel quite MVP worthy.

This is where I throw a bit of a curveball. There has been one player who has been consistently great since Opening Day. The problem? His team is currently out of the playoff picture. At one point earlier this season, the Houston Astros were viewed as possibly the worst team in baseball. Now here we are in June, approaching the All-Star Break, and are the Astros good? No. But they’re also not bad enough to be written off. Going into play on June 19th, they are 35-41 and sitting 4th in the AL West. That being said, there have been a large influx of teams playing average baseball. The Seattle Mariners for instance, are leading that same AL West and are seen as one of the favorites to reach the World Series, and they are just 39-37. And if there’s anything we know about the Astros, it’s that they play up to the moment when the lights get brighter.

So, my prediction comes with a caveat. IF the Astros figure it out and manage to secure a spot in the Postseason, I believe Yordan Alvarez is unquestionably the MVP. He ranks in the top 5 in average, homers, RBIs and OPS. On top of that, if Houston reaches October, Yordan will be the very definition of an MVP – carrying a team to the playoffs when they wouldn’t have otherwise made it without him.

If the Astros don’t qualify, the award will be anybody’s guess, but I believe they will, as they are currently just 2.5 out of a Wild Card spot, so I feel confident in my selection.

I’ll go with: Yordan Alvarez.

NL MVP

I have very complicated feelings about this one. It’s no surprise to anyone that Shohei Ohtani is a bit of a cheat code. I recently had someone tell me that if Shohei Ohtani is healthy and playing both ways at even an average level, that he should win MVP because he’s affecting a game the way no one else is.

I see the logic, but I have trouble with that phrasing, because it almost seems on fair to everyone else in the National League. But that’s just it: Shohei Ohtani is unreal. Earlier in the year, it seemed more likely that Shohei would win the Cy Young than the MVP, and he still could do BOTH (see below), but he got off to a bit of a slow start at the dish batting below .250 for the first part of the year. But he’s rebounded nicely, hitting .289 in May and .360 so far in June to catapult himself into the conversation. Although he’s not tops or in any category or blowing away the competition like Yordan, this is where the value conversation I mentioned above comes in. He is once again leading the Dodgers offensively, who, like Ohtani have come on strong after a slow start, and even though I don’t believe he’ll be able to sustain the blistering pace he’s shown on the mound amid fierce competition from Jacob Misiorowski and Cristopher Sanchez, his pitching performance will undoubtedly factor into his value for Los Angeles.

With Shohei being such a cheat code, I’d be remised if I didn’t mention two other names that deserve their flowers. CJ Abrams is having the best season of his young career. He’s hitting .284 with 15 home runs and 55 RBIs so far this season for the surprising Washington Nationals, who are the highest scoring offense in all of Major League Baseball. He is also 3rd in MLB with an .880 OPS.

Speaking of young careers, second-year catcher and reigning NL Rookie of the Year Drake Baldwin deserves a ton of credit. He is turning into a star before our very eyes. Despite missing roughly 20 games with an oblique strain, Baldwin still finds himself with the 10th best average in the National League, and the 4th-best OPS in all of baseball. The 25-year-old is quickly defining himself as the offensive leader of a championship-caliber team.

That said, the choice remains clear. I’ll go with: Shohei Ohtani.

AL Cy Young

When I first sat down to deliberate on this prediction, I came up with six names, even though at the end of the day, this one is open and shut. But before I get there, I want to give flowers to the others first.

Dylan Cease looks to have regained his ace form in Toronto. He is leading the American league with 110 Ks and is keeping batters around the Mendoza line with a .209 average. Teammates Gavin Williams & Parker Messick are leading the way for an exciting Cleveland Guardians team. Williams is 2nd in baseball with 9 wins and 4th in MLB with 103 strikeouts. Messick is posting the 10th best ERA in baseball at 2.70, has a 1.10 WHIP, and allows an opponent’s average of .215. Nick Martinez is having a career year in Tampa, posting the 3rd best ERA in the American League at 2,60. Jose Soriano was dominate in the early days of the season, and is still posting All-Star numbers, going 8-4 with a 2.79 ERA and an opponent’s average of .215, but his team’s record will keep him from consideration.

All that being said, unlike the National League, this is a one-man race: Cam Schlittler. Schlittler is effectively wiping the floor with the competition. He’s 8-3 on the season with a 1.71 ERA (3rd MLB), 109 Ks (11th), and a WHIP of 0.89 (4th). He’s also boasting a 6.06 K/BB ratio, 10.33 K/9, and a devastating .194 opponents’ batting average. As you can see, a lot of pitchers are having great years, but this race doesn’t feel particularly close.

I’ll go with: Cam Schlittler.

NL Cy Young

This race is LOADED. There are SO many choices, including Chris Sale, Justin Wrobleski, Chase Burns, Paul Skenes and Michael Soroka, but right now, in my opinion, there are three pitchers who are miles ahead of the pack: Shohei Ohtani, Cristopher Sanchez and Jacob Misiorowski. You could make an argument for any of them and you wouldn’t hear a peep from me. I’ll make brief cases for all three before I make my pick.

First up: Jacob Misiorowski. Misiorowski is leading MLB in ERA, strikeouts and WHIP. ‘The Miz’ also sports the highest average fastball velocity in 2026 (99.7). He regularly hits triple digits and even hit 103.7 in a game on June 6 – the fastest pitch ever recorded by a starting pitcher since pitch tracking began. He also boasts an impressive .242 opponents’ batting average on balls in play.

Cristopher Sanchez – Sanchez has stormed onto the scene. He has elite swing-and-miss stuff. He’s second in ERA, strikeouts, and K/9 to Misiorowski, but has tallied one more win.

Shohei Ohtani – In his already super decorated MLB career, Ohtani has never won a Cy Young. So far this year is his best case. At this point, Ohtani does not have the minimum number of innings to qualify, but I expect that to change soon, as he only trails by five innings. Ohtani is posting 9.89 K/9 and a K/BB ratio of 3.72, and am opponents’ batting average of .144.

But the biggest point in Ohtani’s favor is his ridiculous ERA. Through 61 innings, Ohtani holds a miniscule 0.74. If that holds, not only would it virtually guarantee him the award, but it would shatter the modern record of 1.12 from Bob Gibson’s incredible 1968 season.

IF that holds, this isn’t a contest, but that’s a tall order and there’s still a lot of season to play. That’s gonna be REALLY tough, so I have to give the edge to the guy who’s leading in virtually every statistical category…

I’ll go with: Jacob Misiorowski.

AL Rookie of the Year

This has to be one of the more fascinating races in the 2026 season so far. It seems like every night, a different rookie is making a SIGNIFICANT contribution in a big moment in the American League. I LOVE Kevin McGonigle in Detroit, Chase DeLauter has been excellent in Cleveland, Munetaka Murakami is powering the surprising Chicago White Sox to victory. Carter Jensen’s hometown story is awesome. Parker Messick has become one of my favorite pitchers in baseball. The lowest ERA ever for a Cleveland pitcher in his first 18 career starts and a no-hit bid on April 16th. (Yes, I realize all of these players are from the same division…)

For me, this comes down to two names, and the winner may be the player whose team finishes with a better record, or what you’re looking for in a rookie: Murakami and McGonigle. Murakami is 3rd in the majors in home runs (20), in the top 20 in RBIs (41), and top 25 in OPS (.938). McGonigle is hitting 51 points higher, he has a higher OBP and a WAR that is almost double that of Murakami. McGonigle’s BB/K ratio is nearly at 1.00, while Murakami has almost as many strikeouts as walks.

Like I said, it could objectively boil down to which team is better come season’s end. As of now (June 9), the White Sox sit in the second AL Wild Card spot. The Tigers find themselves 7.5 games behind Chicago in the AL Central and 5.5 GB in the Wild Card. If that holds, I give it to the Southsider, but with Tarik Skubal expected back in Detroit soon, and the White Sox being the youngest team in baseball, a lot can change between now and October.

For now, I’ll go with: Munetaka Murakami.

NL Rookie of the Year

As I write this section on the afternoon of June 21 (I’ve written this post over several days), I’ll admit that I thought this was one was pretty clear. JJ Wetherholt has been unbelievable for the St. Louis Cardinals this season. He’s hitting .262 with 10 homers and 31 RBIs and seems to be involved in all the clutch plays for the surprise Red Birds, leading all rookies in runs scored.

But then, last night, Sal Stewart tallied his second 6-RBI game already this season. He leads all qualified rookies in home runs, RBIs, doubles and walks, and trails TJ Rumfield by just two hits. Speaking of Rumfield, he is having an All-Star caliber season for a Rockies team that is showing similar signs of life that the Chicago White Sox did last year. Am I saying the Rockies will be in the same position the Sox currently are next year? No, I still think they are a few steps behind. But led by Rumfield, the Rockies seem to be following a similar blueprint. Young players and chemistry. Rumfield leads qualified rookies in hits, is 2nd in homers and average, and 3rd in RBIs

While I’m in the process of re-evaluating the race, said evaluation would be incomplete without Bryce Eldridge. Even though he’s got about half the playing time as the other candidates, he is impressing. He’s got 37 hits in just 35 games with 6 homers and 16 RBIs. The biggest question mark surrounding Eldridge prior to his debut was his strikeouts and average, but Eldridge is leading all qualified rookies with a .306 mark.

All that said, after re-considering the numbers, I’m going to pivot my prediction to the guy who finds himself at or near the top of almost every category…

I’ll go with: Sal Stewart.

AL Manager of the Year

I’d be remised if I didn’t call out worthy candidates like Kevin Cash, Stephen Vogt or Mark Kotsay, but as I stated in Southside Stimulus, if the Chicago White Sox keep up their current level of play, giving Will Venable the nod should be a cake walk. What Venable has done in just his 2nd year in Chicago is nothing short of spectacular.

The Sox went 41-121 in 2024. The culture was non-existent. Enter Venable. While still a 100-loss team in his first season at the helm, 2025 saw a 19-win improvement, a return to competitive baseball, and the first signs of a clear direction. One year later, the Southsiders seem WAY ahead of schedule, not only winning, but currently occupying the 2nd AL Wild Card Spot. Culture, chemistry and player development is the name of the game, and Venable deserves all the credit. It’s conceivable that the 2026 version of this team could finish with 90+ wins. If so, the roughly 50-win turnaround in just two seasons would be the stuff of legends.

Even if the White Sox don’t make it to the Postseason, NO ONE saw this coming from the White Sox. In my opinion, it would take a historic second half collapse for Will Venable to NOT take home AL Manager of the Year honors.

I’ll go with: Will Venable.

NL Manager of the Year

To finish thing up, this one is open-and-shut. After a couple of seasons where it seemed like the message of longtime manager Brian Snitker had gotten stale, and one massive disappointing season in 2025, it was clear that a fresh voice was needed in Atlanta.

That fresh voice belonged to Walt Weiss. Yes, Weiss had been in the Braves locker room with Snitker for years, but he has clearly provided the reset for a roster that is still built to compete deep into October. Despite dealing with their fair share of injuries to key players already this season, especially on that pitching staff, the Braves still find themselves as one of baseball’s best teams. They are getting All-Star seasons from Drake Baldwin Matt Olson, Ozzie Albies and Michael Harris II, and GM Alex Anthopoulos seems to have hit the right notes with the offseason additions of Mauricio Dubon and Dom Smith a detail that is reminiscent of the 2021 World Series run.

As this team gets healthier in the second half, there is no reason to expect them to slow down. Walt Weiss has this team looking revitalized and hitting all the right notes. Time will tell if 2026 ends the same way as 2021 did – with a championship parade.