Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers has been named as a finalist for the National League (NL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) award in Major League Baseball (MLB), putting him in contention for his fifth career MVP honor.

MLB.com announced the top three finalists for major individual awards in both leagues, including the MVP and the Cy Young Award, which are selected through voting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) on November 3.

The NL MVP finalists are Ohtani, Pete Crow-Armstrong of the Chicago Cubs, and Brice Turang of the Milwaukee Brewers.

Ohtani won the American League (AL) MVP in 2021 and 2023 while playing for the Los Angeles Angels, and secured consecutive NL MVP awards in 2024 and 2025 after moving to the Dodgers.

However, this year, despite resuming his two-way role as a pitcher and hitter from the beginning of the season, his momentum slowed down due to overlapping injuries to his left knee and right biceps.

He has not pitched since his last appearance on July 4, and struggled at the plate during the latter half of the season.

The Dodgers also swept in four consecutive games by the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Championship Series, dashing their hopes of winning a third consecutive World Series title.

Ohtani finished this regular season with a batting average of 0.275 (144 hits in 523 at-bats), 30 home runs, 81 RBIs, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 0.889.

As a pitcher, he made 14 appearances, recording 8 wins, 2 losses, and a 1.79 ERA.

Consequently, Crow-Armstrong, who achieved 40 home runs and 40 stolen bases in a single season, is widely considered the leading candidate for the NL MVP award this year.

He received first-place votes for the NL from all 38 voters in MLB.com's final pre-announcement MVP mock vote.

In the AL, Yordan Alvarez of the Houston Astros is heavily favored to win.

Batted 0.316 (179 hits in 567 at-bats) with 42 home runs and 106 RBIs, he received 29 first-place votes in the same mock vote.

Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays and Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals were also included as AL MVP finalists.

For the Cy Young Award, Jacob Misiorowski of the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL and Cam Schlittler of the New York Yankees in the AL are cited as the leading contenders.

Misiorowski recorded 16 wins and 5 losses with a 1.80 ERA and 252 strikeouts.

Schlittler posted 14 wins and 6 losses with a 1.95 ERA and 239 strikeouts.

Both players received first-place votes from all 32 voters in MLB.com's final Cy Young mock vote.

The winners will be announced on November 12 for the Cy Young Award and November 13 for the MVP.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)