Clement, Lopez named team winners of MLB's Heart and Hustle Award

Ernie Clement has been named the Toronto Blue Jays winner of MLB Alumni Association’s Heart and Hustle award. Photo: Toronto Blue Jays

August 7, 2026

Official MLB Press Release

Colorado Springs, Colo. - The Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association (MLBPAA) is proud to announce the 30 team winners of the 2026 Heart and Hustle Award.

Now in its 21st year, this prestigious honour is presented annually to active players who exemplify a true passion for the game and who best embody the values, spirit and traditions of the game. The Heart and Hustle Award is the only award in Major League Baseball that is voted on by former players. Voting for team winners is conducted prior to the All-Star break.

To determine the winners, the MLBPAA formed 30 committees comprised of alumni players with established relationships to each team. One player from each Major League team is chosen by the committees based on their passion, desire and work ethic demonstrated both on and off the field. At the conclusion of the season, all alumni members and fans will vote to select the final winner from the 30 team winners.

The previous overall recipients include: David Eckstein (2005), Craig Biggio (2006, 2007), Grady Sizemore (2008), Albert Pujols (2009), Roy Halladay (2010), Torii Hunter (2011), Mike Trout (2012), Dustin Pedroia (2013), Josh Harrison (2014), Anthony Rizzo (2015), Todd Frazier (2016), Brett Gardner (2017), Mookie Betts (2018), Howie Kendrick (2019), Ozzie Albies (2021), Paul Goldschmidt (2022), Marcus Semien (2023) and Bobby Witt Jr. (2024, 2025).

The 2026 overall Heart and Hustle Award winner will be announced in mid-November on MLB Network.

The 30 individual team winners are as follows:

American League

Athletics, Shea Langeliers

Baltimore Orioles, Pete Alonso

Boston Red Sox, Willson Contreras

Chicago White Sox, Sam Antonacci

Cleveland Guardians, José Ramírez

Detroit Tigers, Dillon Dingler

Houston Astros, Cam Smith

Kansas City Royals, Bobby Witt Jr.

Los Angeles Angels, Mike Trout

Minnesota Twins, Kody Clemens

New York Yankees, Paul Goldschmidt

Seattle Mariners, Luke Raley

Tampa Bay Rays, Chandler Simpson

Texas Rangers, Ezequiel Duran

Toronto Blue Jays, Ernie Clement

National League

Arizona Diamondbacks, Nolan Arenado

Atlanta Braves, Mauricio Dubón

Chicago Cubs, Nico Hoerner

Cincinnati Reds, Spencer Steer

Colorado Rockies, Jake McCarthy

Los Angeles Dodgers, Miguel Rojas

Miami Marlins, Otto Lopez (Montreal, Que.)

Milwaukee Brewers, Sal Frelick

New York Mets, Carson Benge

Philadelphia Phillies, Brandon Marsh

Pittsburgh Pirates, Jake Mangum

San Diego Padres, Ty France

San Francisco Giants, *Luis Arraez**

St. Louis Cardinals, JJ Wetherholt

Washington Nationals, Jacob Young

*Luis Arraez remains the San Francisco Giants nominee despite being acquired by a different team after the committee voting was finalized.