Baseball MVP List

Baseball's Most Valuable Player award is given to the competitor considered to be best in his league. Major League Baseball gives out two MVP awards each year: one to an American League player and one to a National League standout. Over 100 players have won an MVP award, and some players have won multiple times.

  1. Earliest Winners

    • The Baseball Writers Association of America gave out the first Most Valuable Player awards in 1931. Pitcher Lefty Grove of the Philadelphia Phillies was the first American League winner, while second baseman Frankie Frisch of the St. Louis Cardinals took home honors in the National League. Grove won the award by amassing 31 victories for the Phillies. Frisch posting a .311 batting average while leading the N.L. with 28 stolen bases. Grove's teammate, first baseman Jimmie Foxx, captured the award in 1932 and 1933. Pitcher Carl Hubbell of the New York Giants was the first National League player to win two MVPs; he earned his first in 1933 and his second three years later.

    Early Notables

    • Some of Major League Baseball's earliest superstars were MVP winners. Lou Gehrig was the first New York Yankees player to earn MVP honors, winning in 1936 after leading the major leagues with 49 home runs. Teammate Joe DiMaggio won the award three times in the late 1930s and early 1940s, while fellow Yankee Yogi Berra became a three-time winner in the 1950s. Other notable American League winners include Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox (1946, 1949), Mickey Mantle of the Yankees (1956 and 1957, 1962) and Brooks Robinson of the Baltimore Orioles (1964). Notable National League winners in that span include Stan Musial of the St. Louis Cardinals (1943, 1946, 1948), Brooklyn Dodgers teammates Jackie Robinson (1949) and Roy Campanella (1951, 1953, 1955), Willie Mays of the New York and San Francisco Giants (1954, 1965) and Ernie Banks of the Chicago Cubs (1958 and 1959).

    Later Notables

    • Big-name players took home MVP awards into the 1970s and beyond. The National League list is a who's-who of Hall of Famers, including Cincinnati Reds catcher Johnny Bench, who won the award in 1970 and again in 1972. He was soon joined by teammate Joe Morgan, who won back-to-back MVP honors in 1973 and 1974. Other notables to win in the National League include Mike Schmidt of the Philadelphia Phillies (1980 and 1981, 1986) and Albert Pujols of the St. Louis Cardinals (2005, 2008 and 2009). American League MVP winners include Cal Ripken Jr. of the Baltimore Orioles (1983, 1991), Roger Clemens of the Boston Red Sox (1986), Ken Griffey Jr. and Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners (1997 and 2001, respectively) and Alex Rodriguez of the Texas Rangers and New York Yankees (2003, 2005, 2007).

    MVP Records

    • Barry Bonds holds a pair of Most Valuable Player records. The outfielder, who retired as baseball's all-time leader in home runs, won seven MVP awards during his playing days--more than any other player as of the 2009 season. He is also the only man to capture the honor in four consecutive seasons (2001 to 2004). Two players tied for an MVP award once. That occurred in 1979, when St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Keith Hernandez and Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Willie Stargell finished in a dead heat in the voting. They shared the award.