Why Jackson Chourio, Cooper Pratt Didn't Win World Series MVP

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ST PETERSBURG, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 27: Cooper Pratt #12 and Jackson Chourio #11 of the Milwaukee Brewers celebrate after hitting a home run during the twelfth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays in game four of the 2026 World Series at Tropicana Field on October 27, 2026 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)

The Milwaukee Brewers won the World Series in five games over the Tampa Bay Rays in large part because they had incredible contributions up and down the roster.

That can make it tough to choose the World Series MVP. How were the voters going to pick between William Contreras, Jackson Chourio, Cooper Pratt and Jacob Misiorowski?

In the end, they chose Contreras.

That meant that the heroics of Chourio and Pratt will become slightly lesser footnotes in the history books, as well as the guy who started and won both the opener and the clincher in Misiorowski.

Here’s a look at how that all shook out.

Why Didn’t Jackson Chourio or Cooper Pratt Win World Series MVP?

Contreras was fantastic in the World Series and deserved the award on his own merits.

It just meant that Chourio and Pratt missed out even though they had incredible contributions at the plate, too.

Let’s start with Contreras, though, and why he won. Contreras batted .381 for the series, but he’s also a catcher, and he was fantastic on that side of the ball, too. Contreras threw out four runners attempting to steal bases. He also won 10-of-13 ball-strike challenges.

In the clinching game, Contreras had an RBI double.

“He’s our pit bull,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said of Contreras after the game to reporters, via ESPN. “You don’t just walk up and pet him. There’s a chance you get nipped.”

It was likely those catching contributions that really made the final difference.

Chourio went 11-for-24 in the World Series, which sets a record for the most hits by a player in a five-game World Series. He was also a menace on the base paths and strong in left field.

Pratt hit the go-ahead home run in the 12th inning of Game 4 that didn’t stand up, and he went on a run of six hits in consecutive at bats, which set a World Series rookie record. Pratt also tied the World Series rookie record with seven RBI, and he had a go-ahead RBI hit in Game 3, Game 4 and Game 5.

In many years, both of those guys would’ve been the World Series MVP.

Contreras’ defensive and leadership contributions must have pushed him over the line.