North Side Baseball / The Wrigley Bleachers
Pete Crow-Armstrong Wins Unanimous 2026 NL MVP for the Cubs
Wrigley’s bleachers had already given the season a name. A 45-homer, 41-steal year made “M-V-Pete” official.
At the Cubs’ final home game of the season, green flags went up in the Wrigley Field bleachers as Pete Crow-Armstrong headed to center. They read “M-V-Pete.” The joke worked because the crowd already had the rhythm down. “P-C-A” and “M-V-P” take the same three beats. By the time the award was announced, the bleachers had spent months working out what to call his season. MLB’s report from Chicago.
On November 12, the Baseball Writers’ Association of America put Crow-Armstrong first on all 30 ballots. He earned 420 points, ahead of runner-up Shohei Ohtani and third-place Brice Turang. It was PCA’s first MVP, the Cubs’ first unanimous winner, and the club’s first MVP award since Kris Bryant in 2016. Official BBWAA ballot.
The flags are a better starting point than a trophy case. They show how the North Side made a season its own before it knew the final count. That kind of fan language also runs through the Chicago Cubs collection, where a few letters can carry a whole summer.
How PCA built the Cubs’ first 40–40 season
Crow-Armstrong hit 45 home runs and stole 41 bases, the first 40–40 season by a Cub and the seventh in MLB history. He tied Kyle Schwarber for the major-league home run lead and led MLB outright with 119 runs. Those numbers tell you why you watched when he came to the plate. The Platinum Glove tells you why you kept watching when the Cubs took the field. MLB’s MVP season recap.
His season is especially hard to capture in a single highlight. A center fielder can make a difficult catch look routine by reading the ball early and taking a clean route. Crow-Armstrong finished at +26 Outs Above Average, tying Byron Buxton’s single-season mark for an outfielder under Statcast. Pair that range with the home runs and steals, and the ballot starts to look like an acknowledgment of how many ways he changed a game. MLB’s Cubs defensive highlights.
“I feel like I’ve spent the last five years of professional baseball trying to prove to people that I was more than a glove-first player.” Pete Crow-Armstrong, in MLB’s awards coverage
How “M-V-Pete” traveled across Chicago
The Cubs’ award video took the joke out of the bleachers. In the staged clip, a ball leaves Wrigley Field, crosses the city and lands in the windshield of Bears quarterback Caleb Williams. Williams pulls it free and writes “MVPete 2026.” The video works as a Chicago joke because it doesn’t have to explain the nickname. The crowd had already done that part. Chicago Sun-Times coverage.
Why the graphic puts “Unanimous” first
On the royal-blue design, the biggest word is “UNANIMOUS.” A red-outline “’26 MVP” sits behind a batting figure, and Crow-Armstrong’s full name anchors the composition. The slanted lettering gives the print the pace of a sports-page headline. It’s also a neat reversal of the Wrigley chant: the crowd started with his initials, while the graphic starts with the result and signs it with his name.
A ballot result set like a North Side sports-page headline.
See the graphic →Houston and Chicago both got a unanimous MVP in 2026, but Wrigley got a phrase of its own. Explore more Pete Crow-Armstrong designs or the wider MLB collection to see how different fan bases put their seasons into print.
2026 NL MVP FAQ
Who won the 2026 National League MVP?
Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong won the 2026 NL MVP with all 30 first-place votes. Shohei Ohtani finished second.
Did Pete Crow-Armstrong have a 40–40 season in 2026?
Yes. He hit 45 home runs and stole 41 bases, recording the first 40–40 season in Chicago Cubs history.
What does “M-V-Pete” mean?
“M-V-Pete” combines MVP with Pete Crow-Armstrong’s first name. Cubs fans displayed it on green flags at Wrigley Field, and the team used it in its award celebration video.
The Unanimous ’26 MVP design turns Pete Crow-Armstrong’s first NL MVP into a royal-blue headline for the Cubs’ first 40–40 season and Wrigley’s “M-V-Pete” chant.