My 2026 Major League Pickleball Expanded Player And Executive Awards

Waters vanished disconnected different stellar MLP play by winning the play MVP title.

MLP

MLP gives retired 3 awards officially: the Most Valuable Player and the Most Improved Player for the regular season, and a Finals MVP recently added for 2026. Anna Leigh Waters was awarded the 2026 MVP award successful the last arena of the play successful Orlando, past Danni-Elle Townsend was fixed the Most Improved Award during the first week of the playoffs. Federico Staksrud was given the Finals MVP astatine the extremity of his team’s triumph this past weekend.

For the past mates of years I’ve struggled with, successful particular, the “Most Improved Player,” wanting to differentiate betwixt "the subordinate who improved the astir from past play to this season" versus a classical "Rookie of the Year" for the champion players who made their debuts successful the existent season. I’m surely not unsocial successful this sentiment, arsenic galore successful the pickle-sphere questioned DET’s action and the “intent” of the award.

In fact, if it was me, I’d person some Male and Female versions of some of these awards. And a full batch more. In fact, there’s a slew of awards I’d sanction each season.

So, that’s this post. Here’s my year-end MLP Awards post. I’m going to springiness nominees and winners successful each category, and adhd successful a bunch of awards.

Note: aft I began penning this, the boys astatine KOTC released a podcast pinch immoderate of these aforesaid grant distinctions. They besides had a mates of ideas for further awards that I had not thought of, which I’ve added beneath pinch owed credit. Anna Bright besides posted connected Reddit a variety connected this aforesaid station soon after, pinch a mates further ideas that I’ve borrowed present and noted on the way.

(Note: records fixed are regular play records and stats earlier immoderate playoff matches, and are courtesy of Picklekey.com)

Regular Season MVP - Male & Female

• Male Nominees: Ben Johns, Gabe Tardio, Hayden Patriquin
• Female Nominees: Anna Bright, Anna Leigh Waters, Jorja Johnson

The Winners: we person to spell pinch Hayden Patriquin for the Male MVP. Despite having a somewhat worse grounds than his teammate Tardio (52-11 versus 49-8), Hayden played Mixed-1 each play and had DreamBreaker duties.

Anna Leigh Waters is the evident prime for Female MVP; she went an astounding 60-4 successful doubles and was 29-8 successful DreamBreaker points.

All-MLP Teams

Thanks to the KOTC podcast for this one. Here’s my 1st, 2nd, and 3rd squad All-MLP for the 2026 season, on pinch immoderate honorable mentions.

• 1st Team each MLP 2026: Anna Leigh Waters, Anna Bright, Ben Johns, Gabriel Tardio
• 2nd Team each MLP 2026: Jorja Johnson, Kate Fahey, Hayden Patriquin, Christian Alshon
• 3rd Team each MLP 2026: Parris Todd, Rachel Rohrabacher, JW Johnson, Andrei Daescu
• Honorable Mentions: Jade Kawamoto, Riley Newman, Sofia Sewing, Eric Oncins.

I conjecture this isn’t excessively overmuch of a surprise; each the apical players from the apical teams.

Playoffs MVP - Male & Female

This grant conscionable isolates post-season performance.

• Male Nominees: Federico Staksrud, Will Howells, Hayden Patriquin
• Female Nominees: Anna Leigh Waters, Anna Bright, Jorja Johnson.

Winners: Federico Staksrud is the evident antheral winner, and was deservedly named the Finals MVP. I deliberation it is safe to opportunity that the 5’s don’t triumph this title without making the late-season waste and acquisition for Fed. On the Women’s side, it has to spell to Anna Leigh Waters, who took a mates of Mixed losses, but whose DreamBreaker capacity was captious to NJ’s win.

Rookie of the Year - Male & Female

To suffice for this award, the subordinate has to beryllium marque caller to MLP, pinch zero acquisition anterior to the 2026 season.

• Male Nominees: Nico Acevedo, Armaan Bhatia, Casey Diamond
• Female Nominees: Sofia Sewing, Danni-Elle Townsend, Sahra Dennehy

My Male Rookie of the Year is Nico Acevedo, the sensation who cipher knew connected draught time isolated from Miami’s GM Johnny Goldberg, but who is now a starter for a apical 8 squad successful the playoffs. He went 36-23 this play successful doubles and held his ain successful singles pinch a 43-41 figure.

My female Rookie of the Year has to beryllium Danni-Elle Townsend, who was a complete untested chartless coming from Australia, who instantly made an effect for Columbus subbing successful their first event, past was a ample portion of Dallas’ resurgence this season. She went 47-26 for the play successful doubles, and had a stellar 34-22 grounds successful DreamBreaker points.

Naming Townsend takes thing distant from what Sofia Sewing accomplished; she dominated for Palm Beach contempt almost nary anterior acquisition against the UPA-signed players. Her grounds for the play was 42-18 successful doubles, astir arsenic bully arsenic Townsend’s. Also, location are different females who qualified for this grant who didn’t make the apical 3 cut: Zoey Weil, Isabella Dunlap, Jamie Wei, Alexa Schull to sanction a few. All merit recognition.

Most Improved Player - Male & Female

To beryllium eligible here, these players person to person anterior MLP experience, capable to show the benignant of marked betterment twelvemonth complete year.

• Male Nominees: Eric Oncins, Jack Sock, Max Freeman
• Female Nominees: Kate Fahey, Alix Truong, Brooke Buckner

My Male Most Improved Male Player is Eric Oncins this season. After posting a middling 16-12 2025 Men’s doubles grounds pinch Alshon, he took complete connected the near and dominated successful 2026 pinch Acevedo 19-7 and has intelligibly put his sanction into the precocious echelon of players successful this league.

My Female astir improved subordinate is Alix Truong. After putting up .500 numbers successful Challenger past season, she was 18-14 successful Women’s doubles pinch 3 different partners this play successful Premier. I was tempted to spell pinch Fahey for the 2nd twelvemonth successful a row; She’s now improved her doubles grounds from 29-30 successful 2024, to 55-19 successful 2025, to 49-8 this season.

Best DreamBreaker Player - Male & Female

• Male Nominees: John Lucian Goins, Eric Oncins, Jaume Martinez Vich
• Female Nominees: Anna Bright, Anna Leigh Waters, Zoey Weil

My antheral DreamBreaker subordinate of the twelvemonth is John Lucian Goins, who went 46-24 successful DreamBreaker points this season, partially arsenic a singles master for St. Louis, past partially arsenic a starter for Chicago. He wholly took complete his DreamBreaker duties later successful the season, often dominating the different team’s No. 1 singles subordinate on the way.

My Female DreamBreaker POTY is Zoey Weil. Her DreamBreaker W/L grounds wasn’t rather arsenic bully arsenic either Bright aliases Waters, but her 32-14 singles grounds was ascendant arsenic she played mostly pinch edge-playoff teams each year, going against the apical players from their opponents arsenic California made a huffy dash astatine the playoffs.

Best Singles Specialist - Male & Female

This twelvemonth saw the emergence of the “Singles Specialist,” the assassin who was drafted specifically to play successful the DreamBreaker, if the squad sewage there. Many of our primitively signed singles specialists ended up being drawn into much doubles work on the way, making them little suitable for this grant (thinking players for illustration Haworth and Goins), truthful this is simply a title of those who were drafted almost wholly for their singles acumen and who played that domiciled chiefly this season.

• Male Nominees: Gabriel Joseph, Alexander Crum, Donald Young
• Female Nominees: Keilly Ulery, Victoria DiMuzio, Rika Fujiwara

The Male victor is Alex Crum who went 16-8 arsenic a singles assassin for Columbus. The Female victor is Rika Fujiwara, who went 13-11 successful her constricted clip present successful the states arsenic a singles specialist.

Best Young Player - Male & Female

My qualification present was immoderate subordinate who is 18 aliases nether this season.

• Male Nominees: Tama Shimabukoro, Camden Chaffin, John Lucian Goins
• Female Nominees: Cailyn Campbell, Elsie Hendershot, Kiora Kunimoto

The antheral victor is Tama Shimabukoro, who put up a 24-34 mixed doubles grounds arsenic a two-way starter this full play for Utah. If Goins had a afloat play playing they measurement he did successful the past mates of weeks, this grant astir apt would person been his, and the convention should beryllium very worried astir him successful the upcoming season. My female victor is Cailyn Campbell, who was a starter each twelvemonth for SoCal and went 24-36.

Best Veteran Player - Male & Female

This is the champion subordinate is 35 aliases older for the season.

• Male Nominees: Andrei Daescu, Donald Young, Tyson McGuffin
• Female Nominees: Tina Pisnik, Allyce Jones, Jessie Irvine

The 2 ageless winners present are nary surprise. Andrei Daescu, who turns 38 astatine the extremity of August, continues to beryllium 1 of the apical antheral players successful the crippled contempt being astir 40. Meanwhile, the continued power of 45-yr aged Tina Pisnik is amazing; she’s holding her ain successful a convention wherever the prima players are half her age.

General Manager of the year

Nominees:

• Johnny Goldberg (Miami)
• Eric Tice (California)
• David Grossman (Palm Beach)
• Mark Molthan (Dallas)

There’s compelling arguments for each 4 of these GMs. Tice complied a beautiful beardown squad by season’s extremity and has California setup for occurrence successful 2027 pinch a coagulated and affordable roster. Grossman parlayed his subordinate acquisition advantages preseason and past drafted incredibly good to create a 7th spot roster retired of scratch. Molthan made a slew of trades to remake his full female slate and salvaged Dallas’ season, making the playoffs contempt finishing past successful an arena mid-season, moreover aft galore thought he bungled the off-season.

However, the victor is Johnny Goldberg. He recovered astonishing talent successful the draught erstwhile again, he netted an estimated $500k for his owners pinch a slew of opportunistic trades passim the season, and had his squad someway still successful the playoff hunt going into the last weekend, wherever they went 3-2 successful the group but fell conscionable short of the playoffs. That’s rather a feat for an executive told to walk zero dollars and to effort to maximize his rate holdings.

Draft Pick of the Year

This is not conscionable “the champion subordinate drafted successful 2026” aliases “Most spent successful the draft.” This is the champion operation of worth and the talent received for that draught value.

• Nominees: Sahra Dennehy, Nico Acevedo, Zoey Weil

The prime of the twelvemonth is easy: Miami sewage Nico Acevedo for $10k pinch the 25th wide prime successful the 1st information of the 2026 draft. Dennehy for $35k was awesome value, and Weil for $10k looks for illustration a steal. There’s different imaginable nominees present arsenic well; Goins was drafted arsenic a chair subordinate for $25k and has blown up. Bhatia for $40k was masterful. Schull for $11k already looks great.

Trade of the Year

This is simply a gauge of the effect and value of the trade.

Nominees

• New Jersey/Orlando (Staksrud & Rane)
• LA/Utah (Garnett/Loong/Joseph)
• Dallas/Columbus (Black for Townsend)
• Texas/Brooklyn (Alshon for Frazier)

I deliberation the waste and acquisition of the twelvemonth was Black for Townsend, which made some teams amended and helped move Dallas’ play wholly around. This is pinch each owed respect to New Jersey’s acquisition of Staksrud, which I’d astir apt reason put New Jersey conscionable complete the apical to alteration them to triumph the title. However, Dallas was dormant earlier DET showed up, and they made a tally to the semis successful the aforesaid play they mislaid Jorja.

Waiver Claim of the Year

• Nominees: James Delgado, Casey Diamond, Joey Wild

The easy reply present is Casey Diamond, who Palm Beach finagled arsenic an onsite sub astir 5 minutes aft he signed a UPA contract, past grabbed connected the waiver ligament erstwhile it was clear that Greyson Goldin needed to return a region connected his MLP profession and Bar was wounded mid season. Diamond ends up going 14-13 successful doubles, a respectable 30-26 successful singles, and gave Palm Beach awesome roster elasticity each season. By playoff time, Diamond had supplanted the legendary Tyson McGuffin arsenic PB’s starter and his squad made the quarters successful their inaugural season.

Viral Moment of the Year

I borrowed this 1 from Anna Bright’s Reddit post. What was the “Moment of the Year” successful MLP this season? Here’s my nominees on pinch video links wherever appropriate:

• Tina Pisnik’s amazing ATP successful the MLP Quarterfinal playoffs (which made ESPN’s apical plays)
• The scoreboard falling connected Rachel Rohrabacher successful New York during Week 6’s regular play play.
• 13-yr aged Elsie Hendershot sealing Chicago’s playoff berth by finishing disconnected the Slice’s DreamBreaker triumph complete California successful Week 9.
• Zane Navratil’s over-the-top reaction successful the Chicago-Palm Beach 4th finals.
• Ben Johns going full beast mode successful Week 1 to move an 0-2 shortage against St. Louis into a 3-2 DreamBreaker triumph for LA

Winner: the reply has to beryllium the feel-good communicative of Elsie Hendershot. As I watched that DreamBreaker and arsenic the genitor of a 13-yr aged myself, I could not ideate the emotions going done her head. When she sewage swept earlier successful the DreamBreaker 0-4 and collapsed down connected the sidelines, I thought that was wholly relatable. Still, to this day, I cannot judge the turnaround and poise she exhibited successful that situation, to rebound and move tears of misery into tears of joyousness pinch her teammates. What a performance, and what a memory.

Venue of the Season

Nominees:

• Pickler Universe, Dallas, TX (Week 1 and Playoffs Round 1)
• St. Pete Athletic, St. Petersburg FL (Week 5)
• Belknap Park, Grand Rapids, MI (Mid-Season Tourney)
• ESPN Sports Complex, Orlando Florida (Week 9)
• Wollman Rink, Central Park, NYC, NY (Playoff Finals)

Winner: ESPN Sports Complex successful Orlando. With each owed respect to, especially, the astonishing St. Pete Athletic club, which astir apt would triumph immoderate “Best Pickleball Facility” title it enters correct now, the champion venue of the play has to beryllium what we saw successful the last week of the regular play successful Orlando. Sold retired crowds pinch a ton astatine stake, a nationalist TV audience, and a awesome installation to showcase the sport. Orlando has to spell into the playoff big rotation adjacent year.

Last year’s victor of this “award” would undoubtedly person been Pickler Universe successful Carrolton, which showcased what an energetic crowd tin mean for the athletics and frankincense earned the opening-day and playoff big duties successful 2026. Belknap Park is simply a awesome tract pinch a awesome organization of players, and there’s a logic the circuit goes location each twelvemonth for its unsocial mid-season event. Lastly, the Central Park finals was held astatine an iconic spot and was sold retired to the constituent that tickets went for $1,300 connected the secondary market.

That’s it for each my imaginary MLP 2026 awards. Agree? Disagree? Wish MLP would adopt immoderate of these awards? Feel free to tube up.