Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong launched three home runs during a 17-5 beatdown of the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday at Wrigley Field. The dominant performance solidified his National League MVP bid while keeping Chicago firmly positioned to host the Wild Card series.
Crow-Armstrong put on a show at the plate, pushing his season slash line to .282/.377/.567. The three-homer explosion elevated his totals to 36 home runs and 32 stolen bases. Suddenly, a rare 40-homer, 40-steal season is right in his sights. Only six players in Major League Baseball history have reached those numbers in a single year, with Atlanta’s Ronald Acuna Jr. the last to do so three seasons ago.
The young outfielder is driving Chicago’s attack. Crow-Armstrong leads all National League hitters with a 158 wRC+, trailing only Houston Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez across the majors. Beyond his bat, his defensive play in center field has him chasing a Platinum Glove. FanGraphs rates his overall impact at a massive 8.6 fWAR. That puts him 1.7 wins ahead of Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani.
He got some pregame inspiration from club legend Sammy Sosa. Sosa, back in town for the Cubs’ 150th anniversary celebration, offered a bold prediction before first pitch.
“Sammy did say I was going to hit three today,” Crow-Armstrong revealed after the blowout. He added: “Sammy Sosa said I’d hit three, and I hit three.”
The win keeps Chicago one game up in the loss column over the Philadelphia Phillies for home-field advantage in the Wild Card round. If standings hold, Philadelphia will visit Wrigley Field for postseason play. Winning MVP would make Crow-Armstrong the first Cub to claim the award since Kris Bryant in 2016.
