Miguel Rojas has added another line to his Heart and Hustle resume.
The Los Angeles Dodgers infielder was voted the club’s 2026 Heart and Hustle Award winner, the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association announced. The award goes to one player on each team who “best embodies the values, spirits and traditions of baseball,” with on-field performance also part of the evaluation.
For Rojas, it’s familiar territory. He’s now been selected as an individual team winner three times since the award began in 2005. He previously earned the honor with the Miami Marlins in 2019 and 2021.
The Heart and Hustle Award stands out because former players are the ones doing the voting, and that process happens before the All-Star break. The MLBPAA uses 30 committees made up of alumni with established ties to each club, and each committee picks one player from every major league team based on passion, desire and work ethic shown on and off the field.
The overall winner will be revealed in November on MLB Network. No Dodgers player has ever taken that top prize.
The award’s history includes David Eckstein as the first overall winner in 2005 with the St. Louis Cardinals. The honor was not handed out in 2020 during the pandemic-shortened season.
Rojas is the latest Dodgers player to get the team nod, following Andy Pages in 2025, Teoscar Hernández in 2024, Freddie Freeman in 2023, Trea Turner in 2022, Chris Taylor in 2021 and Max Muncy in 2019.
Around the league, the 2026 team winners include Nolan Arenado for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Mauricio Dubón for the Atlanta Braves, Nico Hoerner for the Chicago Cubs, Spencer Steer for the Cincinnati Reds, Jake McCarthy for the Colorado Rockies, Otto Lopez for the Miami Marlins, Sal Frelick for the Milwaukee Brewers, Carson Benge for the New York Mets, Brandon Marsh for the Philadelphia Phillies, Jake Mangum for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Ty France for the San Diego Padres, Luis Arraez for the San Francisco Giants, JJ Wetherholt for the St. Louis Cardinals and Jacob Young for the Washington Nationals.
In the American League, the winners are Shea Langeliers for the Athletics, Pete Alonso for the Baltimore Orioles, Willson Contreras for the Boston Red Sox, Sam Antonacci for the Chicago White Sox, José Ramírez for the Cleveland Guardians, Dillon Dingler for the Detroit Tigers, Cam Smith for the Houston Astros, Bobby Witt Jr. for the Kansas City Royals, Mike Trout for the Los Angeles Angels, Kody Clemens for the Minnesota Twins, Paul Goldschmidt for the New York Yankees, Luke Raley for the Seattle Mariners, Chandler Simpson for the Tampa Bay Rays and Ezequiel Duran for the Texas Rangers.
Past overall winners after Eckstein include Craig Biggio in 2006 and 2007, Grady Sizemore in 2008, Albert Pujols in 2009, Roy Halladay in 2010, Torii Hunter in 2011, Mike Trout in 2012, Dustin Pedroia in 2013, Josh Harrison in 2014, Anthony Rizzo in 2015, Todd Frazier in 2016, Brett Gardner in 2017, Mookie Betts in 2018, Howie Kendrick in 2019, Ozzie Albies in 2021, Paul Goldschmidt in 2022, Marcus Semien in 2023 and Bobby Witt Jr. in 2024-25.
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