The Chicago Cubs series victory on the road against the Los Angeles Dodgers over the weekend has been the highlight of their season so far. They couldn’t plate a run against the Dodger pitching staff in the series opener where left-hander Matthew Boyd pitched very well in the 3-0 loss.
The tabled were flipped in a big way for the Saturday night tilt, where the Cubs handled Los Angeles their worst home shutout loss in franchise history with 16-0 being the final score. Young right-hander Ben Brown was sharp in the win, as he tossed six innings and punched out five batters.
The rubber match on Sunday night was the tightest of the series and the only game in the set where both teams scored. Pete Crow-Armstrong stole the show for Chicago, as the young centerfield had two homers and a triple in the 4-2 win to give the Cubs a huge series victory.
Chicago received some tough news on Sunday prior to first pitch with the announcement of Justin Steele needing season-ending surgery on his left elbow. Due to this, the front office still needs to figure out how they want to replace Steele’s spot in the rotation to give them the best chance at competing in October. Crow-Armstrong’s breakout game on Sunday made up for the sour news of the day and has him above two elite players in a specific statistical category.
Chicago Cubs’ Pete Crow-Armstrong has a higher WAR than 2 greats
Entering play on Monday, Crow-Armstrong has a 0.7 WAR this season. Per Cubs broadcaster Alex Cohen, he ranks above Shohei Ohtani (0.6) and Mike Trout (0.5) in that metric so far this season.
The big news around Crow-Armstrong over the weekend came in regards to him turning down an extension worth $75 million to stick around the Cubs organization for the long haul. While he is supposedly still more than interesting in negotiating his new deal, he proved his worth on Sunday.
Crow-Armstrong made his big league debut with the Cubs at the end of the 2023 season and played in 123 games last year after spending the beginning of the campaign in Triple-A. The 23-year-old has posted a .229/.289/.400 slash line so far this season in 18 games. Crow-Armstrong’s two homers on Sunday were his first round-trippers of the year and he has also driven in seven runs in 70 at-bats.
The Chicago Cubs need Pete Crow-Armstrong to be reliable
Crow-Armstrong’s glove, arm and speed have always been the more consistent parts of his game. He can cover an insane amount of ground in centerfield and is a weapon on the bases when he can find himself aboard the bags. His glove was the second tool in the minors to show itself, as he took home multiple honors for his defensive play in the Cubs’ farm system.
The only aspect of Crow-Armstrong’s game that isn’t there on a daily basis is his bat. Nobody is expecting him to hit 20 home runs a season, but if he can get to the point in his career where he hits 10-12 in a season and has an average around the .275 mark, the organization would be more than happy with that.