Northwest League Most Valuable Player Award

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SportBaseball
LeagueNorthwest League
Awarded forRegular-season most valuable player of the Northwest League
CountryUnited States
Northwest League
Most Valuable Player Award
SportBaseball
LeagueNorthwest League
Awarded forRegular-season most valuable player of the Northwest League
CountryUnited States
Presented byNorthwest League
History
First awardKevin Coughlon &
Tony Gwynn (1981)
Most recentLázaro Montes (2025)

The Northwest League Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual award given to the best player in Minor League Baseball's Northwest League based on their regular-season performance as voted on by league managers.[1] League broadcasters, Minor League Baseball executives, and members of the media have previously voted as well.[2] Though the league was established in 1955,[3] the award was not created until 1981.[4] After the cancellation of the 2020 season,[5] the league was known as the High-A West in 2021 before reverting to the Northwest League name in 2022.[6][7]

Twenty-two outfielders have won the MVP Award, the most of any position. First basemen, with 13 winners, have won the most among infielders, followed by third basemen (8), shortstops (3), and second basemen (1). No pitchers or catchers have won the award.

One player who has won the MVP Award also won the Northwest League Top MLB Prospect Award in the same season: Zac Veen (2022).[1] From 1981 to 2014, pitchers were eligible to win the MVP Award as no award was designated for pitchers. In 2015, the Northwest League established a Pitcher of the Year Award.[2]

Twelve players from the Spokane Indians have been selected for the MVP Award, more than any other team in the league, followed by the Everett AquaSox (8); the Boise Hawks (5); the Eugene Emeralds and Salem-Keizer Volcanoes (4); the Vancouver Canadians (3); the Medford Athletics, Southern Oregon Timberjacks, and Yakima Bears (2); and the Bellingham Mariners, Everett Giants, Tri-Cities Triplets, and Walla Walla Padres (1).

Nine players from the Seattle Mariners Major League Baseball (MLB) organization have won the award, more than any other, followed by the San Diego Padres organization (7); the Oakland Athletics, San Francisco Giants, and Texas Rangers organizations (5); the Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Angels organizations (4); the Kansas City Royals organization (3); the Arizona Diamondbacks and Toronto Blue Jays organizations (2); and the Chicago Cubs organization (1).

A man in a white baseball uniform and brown and yellow cap
Tony Gwynn won the first Northwest League Most Valuable Player Award in 1981 and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2007.[8]
A man in a white baseball uniform and black catching gear
Todd Greene won the 1993 Most Valuable Player Award.
A man in a white baseball uniform with black sleeves
Garrett Atkins was chosen as the Most Valuable Player in 2000.
A man in an orange baseball jersey, white pants, and a black cap
Joe Panik, the 2011 MVP, was selected to play in the 2015 MLB All-Star Game.[9]
Key
Position Indicates the player's primary position
^ Indicates multiple award winners in the same year
Winners
Year Winner Team Organization Position Ref(s).
1981^ Kevin Coughlon Medford Athletics Oakland Athletics Outfielder [10]
Tony Gwynn Walla Walla Padres San Diego Padres Outfielder [11]
1982 Phil Strom Medford Athletics Oakland Athletics First baseman [12]
1983 Bert Martinez Tri-Cities Triplets Texas Rangers Third baseman [13]
1984 Sam Haley Bellingham Mariners Seattle Mariners Outfielder [14]
1985 Jerald Clark Spokane Indians San Diego Padres Outfielder [15]
1986 Dave Nash Everett Giants San Francisco Giants Outfielder [16]
1987 Steve Hendricks Spokane Indians San Diego Padres First baseman [17]
1988 Stan Royer Southern Oregon Athletics Oakland Athletics Third baseman [18]
1989 Dave Staton Spokane Indians San Diego Padres Third baseman [19]
1990 Matt Mieske Outfielder [20]
1991 Joe Randa Eugene Emeralds Kansas City Royals Third baseman [21]
1992 Larry Sutton First baseman [22]
1993 Todd Greene Boise Hawks California Angels Outfielder [23]
1994 John Donati First baseman [24]
1995 Danny Buxbaum First baseman [25]
1996 Robert Zachmann Everett AquaSox Seattle Mariners First baseman [26]
1997 Dee Brown Spokane Indians Kansas City Royals Outfielder [27]
1998 Jason Hart Southern Oregon Timberjacks Oakland Athletics First baseman [28]
1999 Robb Quinlan Boise Hawks Anaheim Angels Third baseman [29]
2000^ Garrett Atkins Portland Rockies Colorado Rockies First baseman [30]
Jamal Strong Everett AquaSox Seattle Mariners Outfielder [31]
2001 J. J. Johnson Boise Hawks Chicago Cubs Outfielder [32]
2002 Ismael Castro Everett AquaSox Seattle Mariners Second baseman [33]
2003 Conor Jackson Yakima Bears Arizona Diamondbacks Outfielder [34]
2004 Javier Herrera Vancouver Canadians Oakland Athletics Outfielder [35]
2005 Steve Murphy Spokane Indians Texas Rangers Outfielder [36]
2006 Cyle Hankerd Yakima Bears Arizona Diamondbacks Outfielder [37]
2007^ Matt Downs Salem-Keizer Volcanoes San Francisco Giants First baseman [38]
Luis Durango Eugene Emeralds San Diego Padres Outfielder [39]
2008 Daniel Robertson Outfielder [40]
2009 Drew Biery Salem-Keizer Volcanoes San Francisco Giants Third baseman [41]
2010 Jared Hoying Spokane Indians Texas Rangers Outfielder [42]
2011 Joe Panik Salem-Keizer Volcanoes San Francisco Giants Shortstop [43]
2012 Patrick Kivlehan Everett AquaSox Seattle Mariners Third baseman [44]
2013 L. B. Dantzler Vancouver Canadians Toronto Blue Jays First baseman [45]
2014 Franklin Barreto Shortstop [46]
2015 Drew Jackson Everett AquaSox Seattle Mariners Shortstop [47]
2016 Eric Filia Outfielder [48]
2017 Ryan Kirby Salem-Keizer Volcanoes San Francisco Giants First baseman [49]
2018 Curtis Terry Spokane Indians Texas Rangers First baseman [50]
2019 Blaine Crim First baseman [51]
2020 None selected (season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic) [5]
2021 Andy Pages Everett AquaSox Seattle Mariners Outfielder [52][53]
2022 Zac Veen Spokane Indians Colorado Rockies Outfielder [54][55]
2023 Jordan Beck Outfielder [56][57]
2024 Kyle Karros Third baseman [58][59]
2025 Lázaro Montes Everett AquaSox Seattle Mariners Outfielder [60][61]

Wins by team

Wins by organization

References

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