As Major League Baseball nears the halfway point of 2026, familiar names headline the conventional awards talk.

Shohei Ohtani leads the National League MVP conversation, Jacob Misiorowski stands as the NL Cy Young choice, and JJ Wetherholt anchors NL Rookie of the Year discussions. In the American League, Yordan Alvarez, Cam Schlittler and Kevin McGonigle highlight the same categories.

Yet, Jeff Passan’s midseason honors target the unexpected side of baseball. These awards celebrate the game’s quirks and characters where numbers meet narrative.

During spring training, the Kansas City Royals filmed players discussing how many alarms they set daily. Bobby Witt Jr. relied on his dog as a natural wake-up call.

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Nick Loftin claimed “Just one, discipline.” Rookie catcher Carter Jensen admitted he needed “six to eight alarms.” The confession gained new weight on April 2, when Jensen overslept on a day he was slated to start behind the plate to rest veteran Salvador Perez. His morning mishap joined baseball’s humor hall of fame.

Then there was Malik Willis, the Miami Dolphins quarterback, who found himself grouped among ceremonial first-pitch calamities such as 50 Cent and Dr. Anthony Fauci.

In Miami, Willis launched a baseball 10 feet over Marlins infielder Graham Pauley’s head. Willis later wrote in the Marlins’ Instagram comments, “I slipped.” The internet did not let him forget.

Jo Adell of the Los Angeles Angels provided an entirely different kind of spectacle. No one had robbed three home runs in a single MLB game before his defensive heroics.

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His first theft came against Cal Raleigh. The second came on a drive by Josh Naylor. In the ninth, Adell flipped over the wall on a grab off J.P. Crawford, emerging with the ball in hand to the roar of Angels fans.

Adell described the moment as “an out-of-body experience.” Photographer Kayleigh Kraus captured what Passan termed “photographic perfection,” with Adell among the stands and light reflecting off concrete. The image quickly became a defining snapshot of 2026.

Paul Goldschmidt, at 38, redefined longevity for the New York Yankees. Expected to play part-time, he became a fixture in Aaron Boone’s lineup after injuries to Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge. Hitting near .300 with 12 home runs in just over 200 plate appearances, he outpaced the combined OPS of his fellow 38-and-older peers Andrew McCutchen, Carlos Santana, and Tommy Pham (.887 to .894).

The Pittsburgh Pirates gained new life through an unlikely symbol: an orange traffic cone. After seeing Fanatics release a T-shirt that read “HOIST THE CONE,” Jake Mangum requested an actual cone following a rough start.

The team rallied, the cones spread among fans, and the blue-collar image of “raising the Jolly Roger” evolved into a spirited revival at PNC Park. Mangum recalled signing cones and spotting orange glows in downtown windows on the home opener night.

Culture met cleanliness in Chicago. Munetaka Murakami, imported from Japan, asked the White Sox to install Toto bidets in the clubhouse, declaring during spring training, “Everybody uses too much toilet paper.” After a 121-loss 2024, the club embraced newfound comfort.

Milwaukee Brewers reliever Abner Uribe created controversy on May 26 after striking out Alec Burleson of the St. Louis Cardinals and celebrating with three crotch chops. The Automatic Ball-Strike Challenge confirmed the pitch clipped the zone by 0.2 inches. Uribe received a one-game suspension.

Jeff Passan’s fictional awards also spotlight velocity. Jacob Misiorowski, yet to touch 105 mph, has already thrown 332 pitches at 101 mph or faster, 146 at 102-plus, 49 at 103-plus, and 6 surpassing 104. His average fastball speed sits at 100.3 mph, leading the sport’s starters. A new velocity record may await him at the All-Star break.

Corbin Carroll of the Arizona Diamondbacks supplied comedic chaos via a May 19 “Little League home run.”

After smashing a triple to left-center, Carroll was struck in the head by the relay throw, caroming the ball far enough to score. “Would not recommend,” Carroll joked afterward, admitting he didn’t feel great for the rest of the game.

Injuries formed another midseason thread. Bone chips sidelined Hunter Greene, Blake Snell, Edwin Díaz, Spencer Schwellenbach, Hurston Waldrep and Carlos Rodón, while Tarik Skubal benefited from NanoScope technology that cut recovery time in half. Hamate bone breaks claimed Francisco Lindor, Jackson Holliday, Ryan Jeffers, Vinnie Pasquantino and twice beset José Ramírez, who fractured his right hamate in 2019 and his left this year.

Data-driven innovation also defined 2026. The Automated Ball-Strike Challenge System reshaped decision-making.

The Minnesota Twins led baseball with 212 challenges through 79 games, yielding an expected 4.7 runs gained. Colorado and the Yankees trailed closely with 4.2 and 4.0 respectively. Baltimore led hitters’ challenges at 56.5%, while Arizona, Boston, and Texas challenged least.

A bizarre play on April 22 featured Oakland A’s outfielder Carlos Cortes hitting a 107.8 mph line drive that embedded itself inside Seattle Mariners pitcher Logan Gilbert’s jersey. “It was pretty scary,” Gilbert said, bewildered when the single was awarded. “Anybody can catch it in the glove,” he noted afterward.

Lastly, Oneil Cruz of the Atlanta Braves delivered the season’s most theatrical home run—a 432-foot blast that bounced directly off the top of the 92-foot foul pole in Texas.

The dust mark remains visible high above Globe Life Field.

Through these stories, Passan’s midseason awards blend absurdity, athleticism, and the improbable truths that keep baseball endlessly unpredictable.

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