Ranking the best active MLB players without MVP award

Over the years, the names on the list below have dominated MLB headlines at one point or another. Fans may have even heard their names come synonymous with the best in the game. Surprisingly enough, none of them have won a single MVP.

And with Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge owning what is close to a duopoly since 2021, the normal ebbs and flows of the typical MVP race have been disrupted. In all likelihood, both Ohtani and Judge will win their respective races (NL and AL) again this season. With that fact in mind, let’s give four valuable, but never most valuable, players a look.

Juan Soto 

Soto never won MVP; however, he is accruing the highest salary of any player in any sport — and that’s worth something, right? Since his debut, the New York Mets star outfielder has never posted a season with an OBP below .401 (this season notwithstanding). In his eight years in the majors (including 2025), Soto has only posted a sub-.900 OPS once. Had he played the full year during the shortened 2020 season, he most likely would have won his first MVP as he led the majors in all slash line stats.

Soto came his closest to receiving the honors in 2021 when he was voted runner-up, hitting .313/.465/.534 with 29 home runs. Last season he hit a career-high 41 home runs, a total he has tied this year. He has also stolen a career-high 33 bases this season and is very close to joining an exclusive club.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 

The son of an MLB Hall of Famer bearing the same name, Guerrero has proven the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. He is close to posting his third season with a batting average at .300 or above, if he can keep it there. In his seven-year career, the Toronto Blue Jays first baseman has posted an OPS higher than .900 twice. In 2021, he hit .311/.401/.601 with 48 home runs, a stat line that would normally be deemed MVP-worthy. However, Ohtani’s two-way performance was enough to take the gold, pushing Guerrero to runner-up. Since then, he has won a Gold Glove and set a career-high .323 average.

Nolan Arenado 

Over his career, Arenado has built a compelling Hall of Fame resume. This year, however, he isn’t expected to be in the MVP race. The St. Louis Cardinals third baseman's prime is now just a little too far past him. Still, Arenado has been one of the game’s best players in recent memory.

Over his career, Arenado has topped 40 home runs three times, won Gold Gloves every season for his first 10 MLB years, hit NL-best home run totals three times, recorded batting averages over .300 twice, led baseball in RBI twice and posted OPS numbers above .900 four times. Strangely, he never peaked higher than third in the MVP voting, a mark he met twice.

Arenado’s best year at the dish came in 2019, when he hit .315/.379/.583 with 41 home runs. That year, he placed sixth in the voting.

Bobby Witt Jr. 

Witt hasn’t played that long and doesn’t come with the lengthy, elite track record of most everyone mentioned on this list including the honorable mentions section (see below), but in his four-year career, he has already showcased a talent with Hall of Fame potential. Witt has received MVP votes twice and will likely garner some this year as well. However, his most relevant stats come from last year.

In 2024, the Kansas City Royals shortstop finished with a .332/.389/.588 slash line, 32 home runs, 31 steals and a Gold Glove. His batting average and hits total (211) led all of MLB. He also tallied 11 triples two years straight (led MLB in 2023). This led to a second-place finish in the AL MVP race.

Honorable mentions: 

Jose Ramirez, Manny Machado, Marcell Ozuna, Pete Alonso, Max Scherzer, Jacob deGrom, Yordan Alvarez, J.D. Martinez, Paul Skenes