BALTIMORE -- Every season, one Baltimore player receives the Most Valuable Oriole Award, an honor that is voted on by members of the local print and broadcast media who cover the team on a regular basis. And some years, it can be a difficult decision resulting in a close race.
That was not the case in 2026.
Pete Alonso was unanimously named the winner of this year’s Most Valuable Oriole Award, the club announced Wednesday. The 31-year-old slugger was the runaway favorite for the recognition, as he was clearly the team’s top player during his first season in Baltimore.
"To represent this organization, this city every day, honestly, I take an immense amount of pride in that," Alonso said. "So, it's an honor, it's a huge honor."
Ballots included up to three players, with points tabulated in a 5-3-1 format (for first, second and third, respectively). The other O’s players to receive votes this year were utility man Blaze Alexander, catcher Samuel Basallo, right-hander Shane Baz, right-hander Kyle Bradish, infielder Christian Encarnacion-Strand, right-hander Rico Garcia, shortstop Gunnar Henderson, infielder Coby Mayo, left-hander Trevor Rogers and right-hander Brandon Young.
But nobody was coming close to Alonso, who has lived up to lofty expectations since signing a five-year, $155 million deal to join the Orioles last December.
Alonso has been racking up honors of late, as he was the Orioles’ nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award and also their recipient of the Heart & Hustle Award. Now, he’s the Most Valuable Oriole -- the first unanimous winner since outfielder Cedric Mullins in 2021 -- and it wouldn’t be surprising if he finishes quite high in American League MVP Award voting after his strong conclusion to the season.
Entering Wednesday, Alonso led Baltimore in hits (156), runs scored (94), home runs (40), RBIs (108), batting average (.265), slugging percentage (.510) and OPS (.869). He’s also the only O’s player to start all 157 games this season.
All of the numbers are impressive. But Alonso’s power and run production have stood out most.
Now sitting at 304 career home runs, Alonso has clubbed at least 37 homers in six of his eight MLB seasons and has reached the 40-homer mark four times. The Polar Bear is the ninth player in Orioles history (since 1954) to hit 40 in a season, marking the 10th overall occurrence.
Alonso’s 108 RBIs are the most in the AL. He is on pace to become the first player in AL/NL history to post a season in which he led the league in RBIs in both leagues. (Alonso had a National League-high 131 RBIs for the Mets in 2022.)
The stats have never been the most important thing to Alonso, though.
“I just want to leave it all out there,” Alonso said. “I really love playing the game, and for me, I just want to be all I can be and do whatever I can every single night to win the game, you know? I really take pride in wanting to win and giving it all I have.”
The Orioles (76-81 entering Wednesday) are unlikely to reach the postseason, as they’re close to elimination. But Alonso has four more years remaining on his contract and is hopeful he can lead the club back to the playoffs as soon as possible.
Players to win MVO in first season with Orioles
OF Chuck Diering (1954)
OF Dave Philley (1955)
RHP Stu Miller (1963)
OF Frank Robinson (1966)
OF Ken Singleton (1975)
RHP Rodrigo Lopez (2002, rookie)
SS Miguel Tejada (2004)
DH Nelson Cruz (2014)
C Adley Rutschman (2022, rookie)
1B Pete Alonso (2026)
Alonso has hit well, played strong defense at first base and become a leader inside Baltimore’s clubhouse. He’s been an even better fit with the O’s than those in the organization could have imagined he’d be this past winter.
“My belief on any long-term contract is, if you’re going to do anything over three years -- especially when you get into the five-year, 10-year range -- that person has to have behaviors that impact the environment. You want that guy to have a compound effect where he gets people better,” bench coach Donnie Ecker said. “Pete’s up there with the best I’ve seen, just in terms of caring for the people around him and really not ever settling for average.”