Ben Verlander Picking Shohei Ohtani Over Pete Crow-Armstrong for NL MVP Award Sparks Fan Outrage: “Craziest Glaze Jobs”

Shohei Ohtani has won 3 straight MVP awards and is looking for his 5th win this year.

Ben Verlander Picking Shohei Ohtani Over Pete Crow-Armstrong for NL MVP Award Sparks Fan Outrage: “Craziest Glaze Jobs”

Shohei Ohtani, Ben Verlander and Pete Crow-Armstrong (Image via MLB/Fox News)

The National League MVP race for 2026 heated up on Wednesday when Shohei Ohtani and Pete Crow-Armstrong went head-to-head at Wrigley Field. On Thursday, MLB analyst Ben Verlander sparked some fan outrage after he picked Ohtani over Crow-Armstrong for this honor.

The Los Angeles Dodgers star is having another top season. As his side aims for a historic 3-peat of the World Series, he is running for a 5th MVP title this year.

For him to win a 3rd straight NL MVP award, he will have to overcome Crow-Armstrong, who has been the talisman of the Cubs. In the series finale on Wednesday between the Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs, Ohtani and PCA hit 2 home runs each.

Ohtani hit another leadoff home run for the Dodgers before Crow-Armstrong tied the game with a solo home run of his own. He then hit a double and smashed a 2-run home run in the 4th inning, which gave his side a 5-1 lead. The NL Central side added 2 more runs and opened up a 6-run lead.

After Max Muncy crushed a 3-run home run in the 8th inning, Ohtani cut the deficit to 1 run with a 2-run home run of his own.

In the end, the Cubs held on and won 7-6 and handed the visitors their 6th straight loss. This marked a 2nd straight series where the Dodgers had been swept.

Following the game, the debate over the NL MVP race heated up. Ben Verlander, the former Detroit Tigers star, made his feelings known. In a post on X, he picked Ohtani over PCA despite both of them having similar batting stats.

Shohei Ohtani is still the 2026 NL MVP I love PCA. But Shohei, even if he doesn’t throw another pitch, pitching half of a season at a CY YOUNG LEVEL while putting up the offensive numbers he does is a unanimous MVP.

Ben Verlander on X

PCA has 26 home runs and 69 RBIs while batting with a .289 average and a .936 OPS. Ohtani also has 26 home runs to his name so far this season. The Japanese international has 70 RBIs with a .297 average and a .953 OPS. The two stars are currently co-favorites for the MVP honor.

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Ben Verlander siding with Shohei Ohtani in the NL MVP race did not sit well with fans

Shohei Ohtani and Pete Crow-Armstrong have found themselves in a tight MVP race. As the discussion rolls on, Ben Verlander made his choice and sided with Ohtani over the Cubs outfielder. This was something that did not sit well with fans on social media.

Shohei Ohtani
Shohei Ohtani (Image via Imago)

In his take, Verlander brought up the pitching aspect of Ohtani as well. Along with his 26 home runs, Ohtani has an 8-2 record in 14 starts with a 1.79 ERA as a starting pitcher. This has seen his name in NL Cy Young Award conversations as well.

However, Ohtani has not pitched since July 3rd following a left knee issue. Following Verlander’s tweet on X, several users bashed him. One wrote, “Craziest glaze jobs” while taking a swipe at the analyst for his stance.

Check out that and some other reactions from X below:

Verlander, however, was not the only one who picked Ohtani over the Cubs star due to his pitching. In a discussion on the MLB Now show, Cincinnati Reds Hall of Famer Sean Casey also brought this point up and picked the Dodgers superstar over PCA for this award.

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Pete Crow-Armstrong jokes about starting pitching to match Shohei Ohtani

Pete Crow-Armstrong is having a great season with the bat, which has made him one of the co-favorites to win the NL MVP award. There are also chances that he might miss out on the award if Shohei Ohtani resumes pitching at the highest level once again. On Wednesday, he made a joke about this and expressed that he should start throwing from the mound too.

Pete Crow-Armstrong and Shohei Ohtani
Pete Crow-Armstrong and Shohei Ohtani (Image via Bleacher Report/Imago)

While the left-handed hitter has excelled in the outfield, Ohtani’s pitching stats give him a clear edge. Not only has the Dodgers star raked with the bat, but he has also dominated from the mound as well.

In his talk with the reporters this week, the 24-year-old expressed that he was not thinking about the award when he goes up to bat. He then joked about going into the pitching lab and becoming a 2-way player as well.

It’s (NL MVP Award) not on the forefront of my mind. It’s fun to joke about it and it’s fun to acknowledge. … I think if you guys want to talk about all this back and forth, I really should go get in the lab and start pitching. I really should.

Pete Crow-Armstrong said as per Jesse Rogers

On Thursday, he was once again involved in the winning moment. After stealing third base in the 11th inning, he took full advantage of a fielding error from the Toronto Blue Jays and raced home to complete a 3-2 walk-off win.

As for Ohtani, he and his team had a day off on Thursday and will face the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday. The reigning champions will hope to break their 6-game losing skid when they take to the field next.

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