Shohei Ohtani Named MVP for Fourth Time Baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani has won his fourth Most Valuable Player (MVP) award — and many people in Japan have been celebrating his achievement. This year, Ohtani helped his Los Angeles Dodgers team to win the World Series, retaining the title they won a year earlier. The 31-year-old was unanimously chosen as the MVP for the National League. Major League Baseball (MLB) is split into two leagues — the National and American Leagues — and Ohtani has now been named MVP twice in each league. He said that winning the World Series was "the biggest thing" but getting the MVP award was "such a great honor." He won it last year while with the Dodgers and also won it in the American League in 2021 and 2023 when he played with the Los Angeles Angels. This fourth award makes him one of the sport's most decorated names. Only US great Barry Bonds has been named MVP more times. After news of his award reached Japan, special newspaper editions were, as usual, given out on the street. The headline of The Asahi Shimbun's special edition just said: "Ohtani MVP." Baseball fans around the world have gotten used to Ohtani's incredible performances. He managed 55 home runs in 2025 and he also started pitching again after an elbow injury and struck out 62 batters in 47 innings. In the postseason he had one of the greatest games in MLB history. He hit three home runs and struck out 10 batters as he led the Dodgers to a win over the Milwaukee Brewers. Ohtani wasn't the only Japanese player to have a good year in MLB. Seiya Suzuki of the Chicago Cubs was also nominated for the National League MVP award. In the American League, Aaron Judge from the New York Yankees retained his MVP award.