By the time the Baseball Writers’ Association of America released its National League MVP Award results on Thursday evening, Francisco Lindor’s placement was a foregone conclusion. But that outcome could not extinguish the excellence of his season.

Shohei Ohtani  became the first full-time DH to take home the trophy, but Francisco Lindor's all-around excellence made him a solid contender.

Los Angeles Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani captures the third MVP award of his career and first in the National League after a historic season in which he became the first player in MLB history to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in a single campaign.