{"id":95178,"date":"2025-02-06T14:27:48","date_gmt":"2025-02-06T19:27:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=95178"},"modified":"2025-02-06T14:27:48","modified_gmt":"2025-02-06T19:27:48","slug":"why-pete-crow-armstrong-is-key-for-cubs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2025\/02\/06\/why-pete-crow-armstrong-is-key-for-cubs\/","title":{"rendered":"One Cubs Player Could Make a Huge Impact This Year"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Chicago Cubs have had a busy offseason, strengthening their pitching staff by signing left-hander<\/a> Matthew Boyd and trading for relievers Ryan Pressly from the Houston Astros and Ryan Brasier from the Los Angeles Dodgers. They also made a splash by acquiring outfielder Kyle Tucker in a separate trade with the Astros in December. While those additions bolster the roster, MLB.com’s Mike Petriello<\/a> is eyeing one of the most intriguing players for the Cubs this season isn\u2019t a new face\u2014it\u2019s center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong.<\/p>\n

“When you’re as elite of a defender and runner as he is, you don\u2019t need to hit much to be valuable. As MLB.com\u2019s David Adler recently noted, PCA was worth +23 fielding and baserunning runs, making him the most valuable speed-and-defense player in the game in 2024. But you do have to hit at least a little. In the first half, PCA struggled at the plate, batting .203 with a .582 OPS. The second half? He turned it around, boosting his numbers to .262 with a .736 OPS. More importantly, his strikeout rate dropped from 26% to 23%, while his hard-hit rate skyrocketed from 29% to 43%.”<\/p>\n

If a little bit of that second-half offense sticks around to go with his elite speed and defense, there’s some real All-Star potential here.<\/p>\n

What to Expect from Pete Crow-Armstrong This Season<\/h2>\n

With Cody Bellinger off to<\/a> the New York Yankees, Crow-Armstrong is expected to be the full-time center fielder for the Cubs. His ability to impact the game in multiple ways will be crucial for the team in 2024. Even his defense is already among the best in baseball, and he\u2019s just getting started. His speed, instincts, and advanced route-running make him a true game-changer in center field. He posted a +16 fielding run value, ranking third among all MLB defenders\u2014an incredible feat for a young player. His ability to track down balls in the gaps not only saves runs but also helps the Cubs\u2019 pitching staff work more aggressively, knowing they have a Gold Glove-caliber defender behind them.<\/p>\n

His defensive highlights from last season speak for themselves\u2014whether it\u2019s robbing extra-base hits with leaping catches at the wall or making full-extension diving grabs, Crow-Armstrong has the potential to be the best defensive outfielder in baseball.<\/p>\n

Elite Baserunning That Creates Chaos<\/h3>\n

PCA isn\u2019t just fast\u2014he\u2019s one of the most efficient and dangerous baserunners<\/a> in the game. He ranked seventh in all of MLB with a +6 baserunning run value, ahead of names like Shohei Ohtani and Elly De La Cruz. His elite speed fuels both his defensive range and baserunning ability.<\/p>\n

Crow-Armstrong had a sprint speed of 30.0 feet per second last season, making him one of only seven players to average 30 ft\/sec or faster, the threshold for elite MLB speed. His quickness allows him to take extra bases, steal bags, and put constant pressure on opposing defenses. For a Cubs team looking to maximize every scoring opportunity, having a player like Crow-Armstrong at the top or bottom of the order could be a game-changer. He\u2019s a constant threat to go first to third, and with the right offensive approach, he could become one of the most dynamic table-setters in the league.<\/p>\n

His Role in the Lineup<\/h3>\n

Cubs manager Craig Counsell said his “gut says no” when asked about Crow-Armstrong serving as the leadoff hitter to begin the season, according to ESPN’s Jesse Rogers<\/a>. Although he may not start the year at the top of the order, he flashed plenty of promise in 2024, hitting 10 home runs and stealing 27 bases in 123 games. He will need to show more consistency in getting on base if he wants to move up in the lineup. However, even if Crow-Armstrong starts lower in the order, his upside makes him a prime breakout candidate.<\/p>\n

Main Photo: \u00a9 David Banks-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Chicago Cubs have had a busy offseason, strengthening their pitching staff by signing left-hander Matthew Boyd and trading for relievers Ryan Pressly from the Houston Astros and Ryan Brasier from the Los Angeles Dodgers. They also made a splash by acquiring outfielder Kyle Tucker in a separate trade with the Astros in December. While […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3686,"featured_media":95179,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[24,1071],"tags":[899,5899,2319,3683,2435,4025],"class_list":["post-95178","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cubs","category-mlb","tag-cody-bellinger","tag-elly-de-la-cruz","tag-kyle-tucker","tag-pete-crow-armstrong","tag-ryan-brasier","tag-ryan-pressly"],"modified_by":"Matt Graves","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95178","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3686"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=95178"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95178\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":95180,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95178\/revisions\/95180"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/95179"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=95178"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=95178"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=95178"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}