Pete Crow-Armstrong may have dethroned Shohei Ohtani in the National League MVP race, but the Chicago Cubs star made sure to give the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar his due.

Crow-Armstrong was named the unanimous winner of the 2026 NL MVP award on Thursday, with Ohtani finishing second after winning the honor in each of the last two seasons. Speaking on MLB Network after the announcement, the 24-year-old reflected on being mentioned in the same breath as the two-way star.

“Being mentioned in conversations with, you know, one of the best pitchers in the sport, but also one of the best hitters, a World Series champion, and arguably the biggest part of that,” Crow-Armstrong said.

"Being mentioned in conversations with one of the best pitchers in the sport who's also one of the best hitters… I want to be better than I was the day before."

– @Cubs superstar Pete Crow-Armstrong on his NL MVP race with Shohei Ohtani and how he strived to improve in 2026 https://t.co/jEgUw4wJeH pic.twitter.com/AT3HYD77ZR

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) November 13, 2026

“It’s not like we’re racing and going up against each other every day. But I think it’s just the fact that I want to be better than I was the day before. And really, that’s been all that I’ve needed to motivate myself with for really as long as I can remember.”

That drive showed up all season long. Crow-Armstrong played in all 162 games and led the NL in home runs (45), OPS (.943) and WAR (9.8), while also swiping 41 bases to join the 40-40 club.

The two-time MLB All-Star also credited the people around him in the Cubs clubhouse, including manager Craig Counsell and teammates Alex Bregman and Nico Hoerner.

“I’ve been lucky to be in really good clubhouses my first, you know, parts of four seasons up here. They give me patience and a lot of runway to be myself and succeed that way,” he said.

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Crow-Armstrong now joins a list of Cubs MVPs that includes Ernie Banks, Ryne Sandberg, Andre Dawson, Sammy Sosa and Kris Bryant. He singled out the late Sandberg, who supported him while battling cancer.

“He made himself available for a lot of us over the last few years through chemo and everything. He was hugely important to the last few years of my life,” Crow-Armstrong said.

He added that he had spoken with Bryant earlier in the day. “I’m happy to carry on their legacy,” he said.