Ranking the 10 best hitters of the 2026 MLB season so far

Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani both won MVP awards last season — again. It was a boring but justified outcome. In 2026, however, the landscape is beginning to shift. That's not to say Judge and Ohtani can't win MVPs (again), as both are the current odds-on favorites in Las Vegas. But there is more competition, and neither superstar is performing up to his usual standard.

So, let's dive into the best hitters MLB has to offer so far this season, hopefully parsing through the noise of what is real and what is not.

Honorable mentions: Corbin Carroll (Arizona Diamondbacks), Mickey Moniak (Colorado Rockies), Nick Kurtz (Athletics), Yandy Díaz (Tampa Bay Rays), James Wood (Washington Nationals)

10. Bryce Harper, Philadelphia Phillies

Not elite?

Bryce Harper has put Dave Dombrowski and the offseason take artists to shame, bouncing back from the brink of non-superstardom to remind everyone that he's one of the greatest hitters to ever grace this big, blue space rock. The Phillies are on a heater this month in particular, with Harper leading the way. He has six home runs and a 1.067 OPS since the calendar flipped to May.

The walks are up, the strikeouts are down and Harper is channeling his all-fields power more consistently than he has in a couple years now. The Phillies may or may not be truly "back," but Harper most certainly is.

9. Munetaka Murakami, Chicago White Sox

Munetaka Murakami told us all in his introductory press conference that he "has power." And you know what? The man didn't lie: Murakami is off to a blistering start Stateside, with 17 home runs and 32 RBI. He strikes out a ton, yes, but he's also a walk merchant. He sees the zone incredibly well and almost never swings at non-strikes. His in-zone contact rate is a bit low, but the quality of that contact is consistently elite.

This is where the modern game has taken us. Teams are more and more willing to live and die by slug, which means the South Siders will gladly stomach a few strikeouts here and there so long as Murakami can continue to crank it deep when he catches a pitch up in the zone. Chicago is above .500 and only two games behind Cleveland for the AL Central lead, which felt impossible a couple months ago.

8. Drake Baldwin, Atlanta Braves

Drake Baldwin just hit the IL with an oblique strain, the latest in a long string of crushing injury blows for Atlanta. Only those blows haven't been so crushing this season, as the Braves maintain the best record in the National League by a comfortable margin. Baldwin's forthcoming absence will be the biggest test of Atlanta's depth and resillience to date.

It feels almost unfair for a team with this team's wealth of homegrown talent to just stumble into another franchise-defining superstar as soon as things get a bit dicey for a couple years. But Baldwin is stupendous, with a bright-red Savant page that speaks to the incredibly consistent, high-quality contact he's able to generate from the left side of the plate.

7. Matt Olson, Atlanta Braves

An early frontrunner in National League MVP polling, Matt Olson continues to pay off Atlanta's post-Freddie Freeman investment. The Braves lineup is a wagon, with Olson situated smack in the middle of it. He has 14 homers and 38 RBI, consistently generating some of the fastest exit velocities in the sport.

Olson is so steady year over year. His strikeout rate has sat between 23 and 25 percent for five straight seasons now. He does not change his approach. He does not get sped up or bogged down. He knows which areas of the zone he likes to attack and he punishes every mistake. If the Braves hit their way to another ring, you can bet Olson will lead the way.

6. Jordan Walker, St. Louis Cardinals

Remember when Jordan Walker was a poster child for the term "bust" as it relates to former top prospects who can't figure it out in the Majors? Well, it seems Walker just needed a few years to lock in. He's still 23 years old, after all, which is younger than a lot of Minor Leaguers who are still waiting for their first taste of MLB action.

Walker deserves so much credit for the work he put in this past offseason. He homered a total of 29 times over his first three MLB seasons, but he has 13 so far in just 173 at-bats this year. The physical tools and raw power were never really in doubt for Walker, but he just couldn't elevate hits consistently before 2026; Cardinals fans got very used to the hard-hit ground ous. A small tweak in his mechanics has fully unleashed the star within, and there's generally no sign of impending regression. He's the real deal.

5. Kyle Schwarber, Philadelphia Phillies

Kyle Schwarber has 20 home runs before Memorial Day, which puts him on pace for 67 this season. He is dangerously close to Barry Bonds territory in that respect, and while Schwarber almost certainly won't catch Bonds in the end, even flirting with the 70s is a major feat. Schwarber led the NL in home runs with 56 last season, while Cal Raleigh led all of MLB with 60 homers.

Schwarber's strengths and weaknesses are well-documented. He's going to swing and miss a lot. His average is actually back down compared to last season's spike. Still, he's on base a ton due to a high walk rate and he has nine home runs in his last 10 games. It normally takes Schwarber another month or two to get this hot. We are witnessing a special run.

4. Aaron Judge, New York Yankees

Aaron Judge has won three of the last four AL MVP awards and he could add his fourth this season, if his current pace holds. And why wouldn't it? This is just what Judge does now. In fact, his underlying metrics would have you believe the gaudy numbers listed above are actually the result of bad batted-ball luck.

Yes, Judge strikes out. Yes, he has a complicated relationship with the month of October. But as a regular-season machine, there's nobody more dependable on a year-to-year basis. Judge has 16 home runs right now and he's still searching for a higher gear. Pitchers don't like to throw it anywhere near the zone against him, because they know he will punish even the slightest mistake (and a lot of non-mistakes, too).

3. Shea Langeliers, Athletics

Shea Langeliers hit two home runs on Opening Day, and while his power numbers have slowly come back down to earth after a torrid start, he still leads the American League in hits. The consistent, high-quality contact he delivers borders on absurd. You'd like to see him strike out a bit less or take a few more pitches, but his swing-at-everything approach generally works when he can locate the ball on the barrel anywhere in the zone.

To watch Langeliers put up these numbers while playing phenomenal defense behind home plate — a position that historically puts a cap on offensive production — is even more impressive. He has taken up the mantle of the best hitting catcher in MLB, as Raleigh's magical 2025 campaign is looking more like a one-off with each passing day.

2. Ben Rice, New York Yankees

The Yankees are finally ready to unleash Ben Rice on a more permanent basis, and there's a non-zero chance he ends up challenging his own teammate Judge for the MVP award as a result. Rice has a gorgeous lefty swing that cuts through the zone like a sharpened knife. He's highly disciplined, which is too rare a trait in this Yankees lineup, and draws a lot of walks accordingly. He posts exit velocities that rank consistently near the top of the MLB leaderboard.

New York still insists on the occasional Paul Goldschmidt platoon at first base, and sure, Goldy is mashing lefties again. What can ya do about it? But as Rice continues to stake his claim in the heart of New York's order, this Yankees team is going to become extremely dangerous down the stretch — whether their pitching holds up or not.

1. Yordan Álvarez, Houston Astros

We are splitting hairs between Yordan Álvarez and Rice in the top spot, but the former has 33 more plate appearances under his belt and a slightly more sustainable profile, even if Rice might generate slightly better outcomes off the bat. Álvarez leads the AL in on-base percentage and OPS+ (195).

With 15 home runs and 31 RBI, Álvarez offers a rare blend of size (6-foot-4), natural pop and discipline. He does not strike out, despite his wide strike zone. Pitchers tend to throw with extreme caution, which of course leads to a ton of free bases. There's really no way for opponents to "solve" Álvarez at the plate. When he's healthy and on top of his game, Álvarez is the most well-rounded hitter in the majors. He deserves his flowers, even if the Astros can string together a win streak to save their lives.

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