Pete Crow-Armstrong Powers Cubs Game With Two-Homer Win
Pete Crow-Armstrong turned the cubs game on June 6 with two home runs, including a two-out shot in the bottom of the ninth. The Chicago Cubs still needed 10 innings to beat the San Francisco Giants 3-2, but his bat kept them alive long enough to finish it.
Crow-Armstrong at Wrigley
The center fielder's second homer came under the kind of late pressure that had already defined Chicago's night. Crow-Armstrong, 24, now has 12 home runs and 16 stolen bases, and his season line has been strong enough to put him in the middle of the Cubs' offensive push.
He said after the game, “I’m growing up in the middle of all of it” and “Contrary to what a lot of people probably believe, I’m absolutely getting better for all the downs, and the ups as well.” That fits a player who has been asked to carry more of the load while the Cubs chase the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Central.
Brewers pressure the Cubs
Chicago entered the day 6 1/2 games behind Milwaukee after once leading the division by 3 1/2 games. Crow-Armstrong's performance gave the Cubs a needed answer in a race that has tilted hard over the past week.
His value has not been limited to the plate. Entering Sunday, he ranked first in the majors in Fielding Run Value with 15, was tied for first in Defensive Runs Saved with 15, and ranked second in Outs Above Average with 13. Baseball Reference also rated him at 3.9 WAR heading into Sunday's games, which is why his season has been tracked so closely on both sides of the ball.
Counsell's message
That broader arc included spring training with Team USA in the World Baseball Classic, a six-year, $115 million contract extension before Opening Day, boos at Dodger Stadium in April, and a viral exchange with a Chicago White Sox fan. After Memorial Day, his OPS was still lingering in the.670s, so the June 6 power surge landed as both a result and a correction.
After a recent chat with Craig Counsell, Crow-Armstrong said, “Couns made an interesting point to me the other day when he said, ‘It kind of feels like it’s a bunch of have to. We have to get the job done. We have to pick it up, turn it around, win these games. You can’t forget that we get to do this.’” Counsell described the conversation as “just shooting the s—,” and Ian Happ said, “He’s still learning his approach.”
The Cubs got the win they needed, and Crow-Armstrong's two-homer night showed why he has become central to the season's swings. When Chicago needs late offense and elite defense in the same body, he keeps showing up as the player who can supply both.
