Another month of the 2026 season has come and gone, and it featured some standout performances along the way.
Here are the monthly awards winners for May in the American and National Leagues.
AL Player of the Month: Nick Kurtz, Athletics
During a stellar May, Kurtz flashed all the abilities that helped him win the AL Rookie of the Year Award for the A’s in 2025. He batted .333 with five home runs, 26 RBIs and a 1.025 OPS in the month, while drawing 21 walks in 28 games. Kurtz ran his on-base streak to an impressive 48 games, tying an A’s single-season record, before it came to an end on May 26. He is MLB’s leader in on-base percentage at .440, with the Astros’ Yordan Alvarez -- April’s AL Player of the Month -- a distant second at .419. It’s Kurtz’s second Player of the Month honor: He claimed the award with a torrid July in 2025.
NL Player of the Month: JJ Bleday, Reds
Designated for assignment by the A’s in November, Bleday signed with the Reds a month later and has been nothing but excellent with Cincinnati. After starting the year with Triple-A Louisville, the outfielder was called up on April 25 and proceeded to tear up the big leagues. In May, Bleday hit .301 with eight homers, 25 RBIs and a 1.018 OPS, the highest OPS among NL players with 75 or more plate appearances in the month. Bleday was the Reds’ first Player of the Month since Joey Votto in July 2021.
AL Pitcher of the Month: Spencer Arrighetti, Astros
Arrighetti allowed just three earned runs in five May starts, posting a 0.93 ERA for the month and lowering his season ERA to 1.34, the best in MLB behind only Shohei Ohtani’s 0.82 (min. 45 IP). Arrighetti excelled despite some tough competition in May, making four of his five starts on the road, including matchups with the Red Sox at Fenway Park and the Cubs at Wrigley Field. He allowed just one run in 13 1/3 total innings across two starts against the rival Rangers, taking a no-hitter into the eighth inning on May 15 in Houston. Arrighetti is the first Astro to be named Pitcher of the Month since Hunter Brown in June 2025.
NL Pitcher of the Month: Cristopher Sánchez, Phillies
No runs. All month. Sánchez made five incredible starts during his historic May, completing at least seven innings in all five without allowing a single run and striking out 45 in 39 innings. He overtook Grover Cleveland Alexander for a franchise-record scoreless streak in his previous outing and enters Wednesday’s start against the Padres with 44 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings, by far the longest active stretch in MLB. Brewers right-hander Jacob Misiorowski also had an amazing May (0.23 ERA, 38 1/3 IP, 57 K’s), but Sánchez’s scoreless ledger made the difference. The previous Phillies pitcher to be named Pitcher of the Month was Zack Wheeler in June 2025.
AL Rookie of the Month: Munetaka Murakami, White Sox
Murakami landed on the injured list with a Grade 2 right hamstring strain on May 30, but not before continuing his standout debut season with an impressive month. He added eight more homers to his 12 from March and April, driving in 18 runs and slugging .556 with a .938 OPS for the month. He is the first White Sox player to win Rookie of the Month in more than five years: Yermín Mercedes was the previous winner in April 2021.
NL Rookie of the Month: TJ Rumfield, Rockies
The Rockies acquired Rumfield from the Yankees in January in exchange for righty reliever Angel Chivilli, and the first baseman has made the most of his opportunity with Colorado. After a solid March/April (.263 BA, .743 OPS), Rumfield took a step forward in May, batting .310 with four homers, 12 RBIs and an .883 OPS for the Rockies. He’s the eighth Colorado player to win the award since its inception in 2001; the previous one was Nolan Jones in September 2023.
AL Reliever of the Month: Cade Smith, Guardians
Thirteen appearances. Thirteen saves. It sure is hard to beat what Smith accomplished in May, saving every single game he appeared in and striking out 25 in only 13 2/3 innings. He had just a 1.32 ERA during the month, allowing three runs (two earned). No other pitcher notched even 10 saves in May, and Smith leads the Majors this season with 20 of them, three ahead of second place. It hadn’t been long since Smith earned this honor: He was named the AL Reliever of the Month for the first time in September 2025.
NL Reliever of the Month: Mason Miller, Padres
Miller won his third straight Reliever of the Month Award dating back to September 2025 -- and for good reason. His dominance from March and April rolled over into May, as the right-hander did not allow an earned run in 9 2/3 innings while striking out 20. Miller converted all seven of his save opportunities and is a perfect 17-for-17 in save chances this season with a 0.72 ERA and 49 K’s in 25 innings. He’s the first player to win three straight Reliever of the Month Awards since Edwin Díaz (June-August 2022).