Four-time All-Star Yordan Alvarez of the Houston Astros and three-time All-Star Zack Wheeler of the Philadelphia Phillies have been named the recipients of the 2026 American League and National League Comeback Player of the Year Awards, respectively, Major League Baseball announced this evening. The winners were unveiled earlier tonight at the 2026 MLB Awards presented by MGM Rewards from The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. The Comeback Player of the Year Awards are officially sanctioned by Major League Baseball and have been presented annually since 2005 to one player in each League who has re-emerged on the field during the season. The winners were determined following a vote of the 30 Club beat reporters from MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball.
Alvarez played in a career-high 158 games in 2026 after appearing in just 48 games during a 2025 season in which he missed 100 games due to a right hand fracture sustained on May 2nd, as well as a left ankle sprain that ended his season on September 15th. The 29- year-old received five awards tonight, also claiming the 2026 American League Hank Aaron Award, the Rod Carew AL Batting Title, All-MLB First Team Designated Hitter honors, and the Edgar Martinez Outstanding Designated Hitter Award. The Las Tunas, Cuba native, who is a finalist for Thursday’s AL Most Valuable Player Award from the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA), captured the AL Batting Title with a .316 batting average while finishing just shy of the Triple Crown, ranking second in the AL with 106 RBI and tied for second with 42 home runs. In addition, Alvarez led the AL with a 1.033 OPS, .601 slugging percentage, .432 onbase percentage, 341 total bases, 109 walks and 77 extra-base hits; ranked hits (179); tied for third in runs (105); and tied for fourth in doubles (34). The 2019 AL Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year became the third different Astros hitter to win a batting title (fifth time overall), joining teammate Jose Altuve (3x: 2014, 2016-17) and former teammate Yuli Gurriel (2021). Alvarez also became just the fourth player in franchise history (sixth season) to post totals of at least 40 homers, 100 RBI, 100 walks and 100 runs scored, joining Hall of Famer Jeff Bagwell (1997, 1999, 2000); Lance Berkman (2002); and former teammate Alex Bregman (2019). The 2021 ALCS Most Valuable Player and 2022 World Champion is just the second Astro to win a Comeback Player of the Year Award, joining former teammate Justin Verlander in the club’s 2022 World Series-winning season.
Wheeler saw his 2025 season cut short in mid-August with a right upper extremity blood clot. The veteran right-hander underwent season-ending thoracic outlet decompression surgery (TOS) last September and missed the beginning of the 2026 campaign before returning to the mound on April 25th. The 36-year-old made 28 starts on the season, going 14-5 with a 3.00 ERA. In 162.0 innings pitched, Wheeler permitted 54 earned runs on 123 hits with 47 walks and 193 strikeouts. Among qualified NL pitchers, Wheeler ranked third in opponents’ batting average (.207); fourth in strikeouts per nine innings (10.72) and WHIP (1.05); tied for fourth in wins; seventh in ERA; and eighth in strikeouts. Wheeler tossed at least 5.0 innings in 24 of his 28 starts, and he permitted two-orfewer earned runs in 20 of his outings. The Smyrna, Georgia native posted a 6.0 bWAR to become just the 28th pitcher in Major League history, and the sixth pitcher this century, to reach that mark in a season at age 36-or-older (also: Curt Schilling in 2003-04; Hall of Famer Randy Johnson from 2000-04; Roger Clemens in 2005; Justin Verlander in 2019; and Max Scherzer in 2021). Wheeler collected his 2,000th career strikeout on September 22nd during an 11-strikeout performance as Philadelphia picked up a 6-4 victory over the eventual World Champion Milwaukee Brewers. The start marked his 310th career game, tying Félix Hernández for the 13th-fewest games needed to reach the milestone in Major League history. The outing also marked the last of Wheeler’s four double-digit strikeout performances on the season. The sixth overall pick in the 2009 Draft (by SF) also accomplished the feat in three consecutive starts to begin July, fanning 10 against the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates on July 1st; notching a season-best and career-high-tying 14 strikeouts at Cincinnati on July 7th; and racking up 10 more strikeouts at Detroit on July 12th. Wheeler becomes the second Phillies recipient of the award, joining Brad Lidge (2008).
Other players who received votes for AL Comeback Player of the Year included Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Shane McClanahan (10-7, 3.36 ERA, 24 GS, 118.0 IP, 39 BB, 106 SO), who missed the entire 2024 and 2025 seasons due to injuries; New York Yankees pitchers Gerrit Cole (10-9, 3.61 ERA, 22 GS, 127.0 IP, 25 BB, 131 SO), who missed the entire 2025 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, and Paul Blackburn (7-3, 1.69 ERA, 62 G, 1 SG, 85.0 IP, 33 BB, 69 SO), who was limited to just 15 appearances in 2025; Cleveland Guardians/Washington Nationals pitcher Foster Griffin (15-6, 3.60 ERA, 31 GS, 172.2 IP, 45 BB, 158 SO), who made the All-Star Game in a career-best Major League season after returning from three seasons in Japan’s NPB; and Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout (.242, 142 G, 86 R, 124 H, 26 2B, 22 HR, 54 RBI, 11 SB, 107 BB, .803 OPS), who dealt with a variety of injuries, including a right hamstring strain, during the 2025 season. Other players who received votes for NL Comeback Player of the Year included Cincinnati Reds reliever Tejay Antone (3-2, 3.11 ERA, 58 G, 1 SV, 55.0 IP, 17 BB, 57 SO), who missed the entire 2025 season while recovering from his third career Tommy John surgery; San Diego Padres infielder Ty France (.295, 133 G, 59 R, 130 H, 24 2B, 2 3B, 21 HR, 72 RBI, .865 OPS), who signed a Minor League deal with the Padres prior to the season; Miami Marlins hurler Sandy Alcantara (13-11, 3.87 ERA, 33 GS, 1 CG, 1 SHO, 3 SV, 214.0 IP, 59 BB, 153 SO), who led the Majors in innings pitched after posting a 5.36 ERA across 31 starts in 2025; Atlanta Braves outfielder Michael Harris II (.294, 155 G, 79 R, 174 H, 36 2B, 1 3B, 26 HR, 87 RBI, 12 SB, .812 OPS), who registered a career-low .678 OPS in 2025; Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Garrett Mitchell (.262, 145 G, 74 R, 121 H, 30 2B, 4 3B, 11 HR, 65 RBI, 14 SB, .771 OPS), who was limited to just 25 games in 2025 by left oblique and shoulder injuries; Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Jared Jones (5-6, 3.72 ERA, 21 GS, 101.2 IP, 31 BB, 123 SO), who missed the entire 2025 season after undergoing right elbow surgery; and Arizona Diamondbacks All-Star pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez (16-7, 2.89 ERA, 32 GS, 189.2 IP, 62 BB, 143 SO), who posted a 5.04 ERA in 2024 and a 5.02 ERA in 2025 while battling injuries that limited him to 39 starts combined across the two seasons.
All-time winners of the Comeback Player of the Year Awards include:
