Jacob Misiorowski could have case for NL MVP votes as Yankees star Cam Schlittler gains AL momentum

Winning an MVP award as a pitcher in Major League Baseball is no easy task. Not counting Shohei Ohtani, who wouldn't have won four MVP awards in the last five years if he were solely a pitcher, only two pitchers have won an MVP award in the last 33 years: Justin Verlander won the AL MVP in 2011, and Clayton Kershaw won the NL MVP in 2014.

However, this year, there are two pitchers, one in the American League and one in the National League, who are worthy of at least being mentioned in the MVP conversation. In the AL, New York Yankees' second-year starting pitcher Cam Schlittler has put together a head-turning performance in 2026. The 25-year-old right-hander has a 1.95 ERA in 31 starts, while collecting 228 strikeouts in 184.2 innings pitched. He's the clear favorite for the AL Cy Young, and lately his name has started surfacing in MVP conversations as well.

Schlittler leads the AL with 7.1 bWAR, and while Houston Astros' DH Yordan Alvarez, the runaway favorite to win AL MVP this year, still has a chance to win the Triple Crown, many are justifiably arguing that the Yankees' ace at least deserves to be in the MVP conversation.

That said, if Schlittler's name eventually enters the MVP conversation in the American League, Milwaukee Brewers' ace Jacob Misiorowski, who has been just as dominant this year, also deserves to be a finalist for the NL MVP award. The flame-throwing Misiorowski has an identical ERA to Schlittler (1.95), but bests the Yankees' right-hander when it comes to strikeouts, WHIP, and opponent batting average. While the path for Misiorowski to actually win the NL MVP award is far more difficult than Schlittler's path to the AL MVP, due to the season that Pete Crow-Armstrong is putting together, Miz at least deserves to receive plenty of MVP votes this year.

Brewers' ace Jacob Misiorowski deserves to be a finalist for the NL MVP award in 2026

Misiorowski isn't going to win the NL MVP award in 2026. As painful as it is to admit, Crow-Armstrong is the clear favorite for the award, so much so that most betting markets won't allow fans to place bets on the NL MVP award anymore. However, Misiorowski could still make history by being named a finalist for the award.

The Brewers haven't had a pitcher receive MVP votes since Corbin Burnes finished 15th in NL MVP voting during the 2021 season. The fact that Burnes was the NL Cy Young award winner in 2021 and didn't finish better than 15th in MVP voting should tell you just how difficult it is for a pitcher to win an MVP. Misiorowski, therefore, has an excellent chance to finish higher than any Brewers pitcher in MVP voting since reliever Rollie Fingers won the AL MVP award during the split 1981 season that included a month-long break due to a players' strike.

However, it's not Burnes' 15th-place finish that Misiorowski will have to beat to finish higher than any other Brewers pitcher in MVP voting outside of Fingers. Rather, it's a miraculous 6th-place finish that CC Sabathia turned in during the 2008 season that Miz will have to best. What makes Sabathia's 6th-place finish in the 2008 NL MVP voting so incredible is the fact that he only played in the National League for roughly half of the season. In just 17 starts with the Brewers in 2008, Sabathia established himself as one of the most valuable players in the NL.

Other Brewers pitchers who have received MVP votes include Mike Caldwell, who finished 12th in 1978, and Teddy Higuera, who finished 15th in 1986. Misiorowski will almost certainly add his name to that list, and he deserves to do so as a finalist for this year's NL MVP award. Crow-Armstrong and Ohtani are certain to both be finalists for the award, but Misiorowski deserves the nod for the final spot over other candidates like Kyle Schwarber and Matt Olson.

While neither Schlittler nor Misiorowski looks likely to actually win the MVP in the respective leagues, both young aces deserve to be finalists for the award. Such a distinction for Misiorowski would make history as the first Brewers' pitcher to be named a finalist for the National League MVP award.

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