4 MVPs on 1 team ... how rare is that?
The Yankees¡¯ new-look roster has no shortage of MVP winners.
In addition to two-time MVP Aaron Judge -- the reigning American League winner -- and Giancarlo Stanton (2017 National League), the Bronx Bombers now feature two other MVPs, having reached a one-year, $12.5 million deal (per a source) with Paul Goldschmidt (2022 NL) several days after acquiring Cody Bellinger (2019 NL) in a trade with the Cubs.
How rare is it for a team to have four MVP winners appear in a single season? Glad you asked.
The 2025 Yankees will be the seventh team to do so, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Here¡¯s a look at the prior six instances, three of which have come since 2021.
2024 Dodgers
With Mookie Betts (2018 AL) and Freddie Freeman (2020 NL) already on their roster, the Dodgers went out and acquired Shohei Ohtani (2021 and 2023 AL) in free agency, signing the two-way superstar to a historic 10-year, $700 million deal. Less than two months later, the Dodgers re-signed franchise icon Clayton Kershaw (2014 NL), bringing him back for his 17th season with the team. Though Kershaw missed the entire first half of 2024 while recovering from left shoulder surgery and also sat out the playoffs with a toe injury, he managed to make seven starts in 2024. As a result, the Dodgers became the sixth team all time to have four MVP winners appear for them in a season.
With Ohtani in the fold, the Dodgers went on to win their second World Series title in five years. Ohtani didn't pitch in 2024, but he finished with 54 homers and 59 steals -- notching MLB's first 50-50 season in the process -- en route to his third career MVP Award. With that, he joined Hall of Famer Frank Robinson as the only players to win an MVP in each league.
2022 Dodgers
Two seasons before Ohtani joined the Dodgers on a historic contract, Los Angeles fielded another MVP quartet: Freeman, Betts, Kershaw and Bellinger. The first three players on that list performed as expected. Freeman finished fourth for MVP in his first season with the Dodgers. Betts finished fifth, and Kershaw recorded a 2.28 ERA over 126 1/3 innings. However, Bellinger struggled to a .210/.265/.389 slash line through 550 plate appearances. He was non-tendered after the season and went on to have a resurgent year with the Cubs in 2023.
This club ran roughshod over the league during the regular season, racking up a franchise-record 111 wins. But it was all for naught in the postseason as they were eliminated by the Padres in the NLDS.
2021 Dodgers
That¡¯s right -- the Dodgers have done this three times in the past four years. The 2021 cast was almost the same from '22, with 2005 and 2008-09 NL MVP winner Albert Pujols instead of Freeman. Pujols joined the Dodgers on May 17, becoming the fourth MVP on the roster. All four appeared in the same game together five times, a feat that is of course made harder to accomplish by the fact that Kershaw is a starting pitcher. For what it¡¯s worth, the Dodgers were 4-1 in those games.
But of course, the real question is whether that MVP power led to a title. After winning the NL Wild Card Game and the NL Division Series, the Dodgers lost in the NL Championship Series in six games to the eventual World Series-winning Braves.
1996 Red Sox
The Sox began the season with 1986 AL MVP Roger Clemens, '88 AL MVP Jose Canseco, '89 NL MVP Kevin Mitchell and '95 AL MVP Mo Vaughn, but the four didn¡¯t stay together too long. Mitchell, in his first year with Boston, played in just 27 games, hampered by injuries to both hamstrings, before he was traded to the Reds on July 30. The quartet played in five games together, with the Red Sox losing all five.
The team went 85-77, finishing third in the AL East.
1982 Angels
The 1982 season was the first of five years with the Angels for '73 AL MVP Reggie Jackson. Upon his arrival, he joined '77 AL MVP Rod Carew, '75 AL MVP (and Rookie of the Year!) Fred Lynn and '79 AL MVP Don Baylor, all of whom had already played together. The four appeared in 111 regular-season games together and went 60-51.
The '82 season yielded the second postseason appearance in Angels franchise history. The Halos lost in the ALCS in five games to the Brewers. Baylor was a free agent after the year and signed with the Yankees, ending the pairing of these four on the same team.
1978 Reds
When George Foster won the 1977 NL MVP, he joined a trio of teammates who had also won MVP Awards -- and all recently with the same club. That meant that the '78 Reds entered the season with Foster, plus '73 NL MVP Pete Rose, '75-76 NL MVP Joe Morgan and '70 and '72 NL MVP Johnny Bench. The Big Red Machine, indeed. The Reds played 99 games with all four MVPs appearing and went 52-47.
The team went 92-69, finishing 2 1/2 games behind the Dodgers in the NL West. Rose was a free agent after the season and signed with the Phillies, ending a season-long run for this quartet as MVP winners on the same team.