Shohei Ohtani has pretty much cemented himself as the GOAT! He was only recently named the National League’s Most Valuable Player, making this his third straight MVP and the fourth of his MLB career. Shotime earned every single first-place vote from all 30 reporters. Yet, Fernando Tatis Jr. seems poised to interrupt the Dodgers star’s streak of three consecutive MVP awards.

Though the San Diego Padres’ $340 million star hasn’t fully returned to his pre-suspension form, he’s getting close. Tatis has clearly become the leader of a club that always seems on the verge of breaking through.

His move to right field has only boosted his value. And winning the NL Platinum Glove in 2025 proved he could switch positions without missing a beat.

Tatis is now viewed as a kind of player who lifts his team. He’s hovered around a 30-30 season for most of his career, but has never quite hit the mark. Maybe he’ll just skip straight to 40-40 instead.

In fact, 2025 was Tatis’ strongest season since 2021. He posted a 5.9 bWAR and finished with a .268/.368/.446 line, 25 home runs, and 71 RBIs.

But can he actually put an end to Shohei Ohtani’s three-year MVP streak?

Tatis is already a three-time All-Star, a two-time Silver Slugger, and a two-time Gold Glove winner. His latest season was his most complete yet. He even took home a Platinum Glove while recording 32 steals.

Now entering the prime of his career, Tatis could instantly fit on any contender thanks to his elite defense and all-around offensive game.

For now, it looks like the Padres plan to make at least one more serious World Series push with Ohtani’s archnemesis as their centerpiece. And if we’re talking MVPs, Ohtani himself won’t give up that streak so easily.

Shohei Ohtani hopes to bring in more MVPs

Shohei Ohtani made MLB history on Thursday, becoming only the second player ever to win more than three MVP awards. His fourth MVP now puts him in an exclusive club with Barry Bonds, who holds the record with seven. And even after that, Ohtani clearly isn’t done chasing greatness.

“I never … start off a season aiming to get the MVP. A lot of it, obviously, everything, has to do with your teammates, and you want to play good baseball. At the end of the day, we want to be playing in the World Series. I think the MVP just comes along with how you’re playing during the season. Obviously, if I’m playing well as an individual, that means I’m helping my team win. So in that sense, hopefully I can win a couple more MVPs. But at the end of the day, it’s all about winning games.” He shared the other day.

Ohtani won his first MVP in 2021 after taking a massive leap, crushing 46 home runs and topping 100 RBIs for the first time in his career with the Angels. He earned his second MVP two years later. Again with the Angels, leading the American League with 44 homers and 95 RBIs.

After moving with the Dodgers, Shotime somehow got even better. In his first season in blue, Shohei Ohtani led the National League with 54 home runs and shattered his previous RBI high, driving in 130 runs over 159 games.

The 2025 season was another standout year for the two-way marvel.

He blasted 55 home runs, drove in 102 runs, and made his long-awaited return to the mound after a year and a half recovering from injury. He finished the season leading all of MLB in runs and topped the National League in slugging percentage (.622) and OPS (1.014).

Even Kyle Schwarber entered MVP conversations midseason, but Ohtani’s stellar 2025 performance made him all but certain to claim the award. And in 2026, he’ll evidently aim to keep driving his team to endless wins and push Barry Bonds’ record within reach by going for his fifth MVP.