New York ? Barry Bonds probably will pick up a big postseason honor today, just not the one he wanted.

After putting up another season of historic statistics, Bonds is favored to win the National League Most Valuable Player Award for the fifth time when the Baseball Writers’ Association of America announces its voting today.

Bonds, the only player with more than three MVPs, won his first NL batting title this season with a .370 average and set records with 198 walks, 68 intentional walks and a .582 on-base percentage.

Bonds hit 46 homers, down from a record 73 the previous year, and a team-high 110 RBIs as San Francisco won its first NL pennant since 1989. But Bonds and the Giants lost the World Series to Anaheim in seven games after being just six outs from the title in Game 6.

Bonds had said a World Series ring was the one thing he had wanted.

“It’s not going to haunt us,” he said after the Game 7 loss two weeks ago. “We’ll go to spring training and start again.”

MVP voting was conducted before the postseason, when Bonds hit .356 with eight homers, 16 RBIs and 27 walks. The 38-year-old outfielder, who often appears aloof and combative, said he enjoyed the World Series, even though the Giants didn’t win. He claims to dislike the attention.

Bonds won the MVP award for Pittsburgh in 1990 and 1992 and for the Giants in 1993 and 2001, and could be a unanimous pick for the first time. He also finished second to Atlanta’s Terry Pendleton in 1991 and to teammate Jeff Kent in 2000.

For winning the award, he would get a $500,000 bonus added to his $13 million. He would have gotten $150,000 for the World Series MVP award.