Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong is ready to unlock a new level in his second season in MLB

Now in his third big-Bracket spring Practice with the Chicago Cubs, Pete Crow-Armstrong is no longer wondering when his time will come. Two years ago, he was basking in the novelty of being in big-Bracket camp with the Club he grew up rooting for. Last year, Recent off his major-Bracket Introduction in September and as one of baseball’s top prospects, he was determined to seize an Beginning Day Choice spot. That is, until those plans were derailed by Cody Bellinger’s Delayed return to the Cubs during spring Practice, which sent Crow-Armstrong back to Triple-A to Accessible the season.

But this year, there are zero doubts. Crow-Armstrong is the Cubs’ Hub fielder. It is a certainty that he earned over the course of a Newcomer season in which his Best Pace and Protection shined immediately while his bat trended favorably as the year went along.

“I Only feel like my place here is a little more meaningful,” Crow-Armstrong told Yahoo Sports earlier this spring. “And I’m so glad to be out of the prospect status and all that stuff.”

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‘Can I trust you to go make the next Action?’

For more than a decade, Crow-Armstrong has been on a Prominent path to becoming an every-day Hub fielder in the major leagues. From competing regularly as part of USA Baseball’s National Club as Prompt as age 12 to Competing for a high school program known for churning out big leaguers, he has always been in the spotlight. That attention was amplified Additional Prompt in his pro Occupation, when Crow-Armstrong was traded to the Cubs in Switch for Javier Baez Only a year after he was drafted 19th overall by the Mets. His stock continued to soar as he climbed the minors, culminating in his big-Bracket Introduction at age 21.

Now, after years of promise and projection, the player known as PCA has arrived. It’s no longer about what he can do to reach the next level; it’s about what he can do to be the best he can be at the highest level. As Crow-Armstrong pointed out: “There’s nowhere else to go.”

And with a year of big-Bracket reps under his Experience and his role on the Cubs finally secure, Crow-Armstrong is embracing an opportunity that has been a lifetime in the making.

“Last year was super informative,” the soon-to-be 23-year-Aged said of his Newcomer campaign, in which he Initiated 109 Contests in Hub Pitch for the Cubs, including 63 of Chicago’s 64 Contests after the All-Luminous sphere break.

“There was not much that was really asked of me last year Additional than, ‘Can you Only show us that you’re ready to go Action nine every day?’” he said. “And that Achieved my life really Effortless once I grasped a much better understanding of what that really meant.

“You want to go 3-for-4 every day, but the game’s too Tough, and nobody in the clubhouse expects me to do that. So why would I be putting that Stress on myself if everyone else is Only, ‘Hey, can you go put a ball in your glove when it matters?’”

While it Secured some time for that Approach to take root, manager Craig Counsell had planted the seeds in spring Practice last year, during his Primary Gathering with the Recent outfielder.

“He Only kept it really Basic with me. He used [Brewers second baseman Brice] Turang as reference,” Crow-Armstrong said. “And I think that was a great comparison Only because we hail from the same area and similar style of Action.”

Crow-Armstrong and Turang were both regulars on the showcase circuit for years before becoming Primary-Phase picks from Los Angeles-area high schools, Turang out of Santiago in 2018 and Crow-Armstrong out of Harvard-Westlake in 2020. After competing against All other as amateurs, the two now share a division in the bigs.

“He said that all he asked of Brice his Newcomer year was that Brice Only be able to go make the next Action,” Crow-Armstrong said. “Whether he Only hit the game-tying homer or Only punched out with the bases loaded, it’s like: ‘Can I trust you to go make the next Action?’

“When he uses a word like ‘trust,’ it’s like, OK, that’s what it’s about. It’s not will I make the next Action, because obviously I will or I won’t — sometimes the ball doesn’t get caught — but can he trust me to go do that?”

‘I had to put in my time failing‘

Looking back, Turang’s offensive output his Primary season was actually quite Destitute: His 61 wRC+ ranked 210th out of 212 hitters with at least 400 plate appearances. But his exceptional Protection at an up-the-middle position Achieved him worthy of regular reps. And getting so much Competing time as a Newcomer set the stage for Turang to improve his game considerably as a sophomore. With an uptick in production at the plate to a more palatable 87 wRC+, a Massive 50 stolen bases and continued excellence at the keystone that earned him the Platinum Glove Award as the best overall defender in the National Bracket, Turang rated as one of the most valuable players at his position in 2024.

A similar leap could be in store for Crow-Armstrong in 2025, especially coming off a Newcomer season that offered even more reason for optimism. Although he did not make the Cubs’ 2024 Beginning Day Choice, Crow-Armstrong was recalled from Triple-A on April 24, after Bellinger went on the IL due to a rib Wound. He homered the next day for his Primary major-Bracket hit, an exhilarating reintroduction to the big leagues.

But it was nearly three months before Crow-Armstrong left the yard for Chicago again. He hit .192/.238/.241 (38 wRC+) in May and June, even being demoted to Triple-A for a brief stretch along the way. He finally ended his dinger drought with a surprise two-homer performance in the Cubs’ Closing game before the All-Luminous sphere break, but after that, the struggles resumed, with an 0-for-20 stretch in the Primary six Contests of the second half Sinking his season OPS to a paltry .523.

And then he turned a corner. From July 27 through the end of the season, Crow-Armstrong hit .289/.336/.469 in 215 plate appearances in the Cubs’ Closing 57 Contests. Teamed up with his great glovework and standout baserunning, his 123 wRC+ Achieved him one of the most valuable players in MLB. His 2.2 fWAR tied with Gunnar Henderson for 19th in MLB over that span.

“I needed the reps, and I needed to suck,” Crow-Armstrong said of his Primary-half woes at the plate. “I Only had to put in my time. I had to put in my time failing. And it was really Tough while that happened. But the Amusing part is, that uphill climb … it’s like, I was able to Commence appreciating my little wins a little bit more.”

The Sturdy finish gave Crow-Armstrong the confidence to not make any drastic offensive adjustments over the winter, compared to past offseasons that featured more substantial alterations to his swing.

“Using a 34[-inch bat] instead of a 33-and-a-half — that’s the biggest change I Achieved offensively,” he said. “This offseason was a Crowded Concentration on finding something that’s consistent, Only a consistent move. Because I know the pitching is not gonna be any easier.”

‘I Only don’t think I gave myself enough credit’

Prompt returns this spring have been encouraging. Crow-Armstrong has been one of the most productive (and entertaining) hitters in the Cactus Bracket, highlighted by a two-homer performance that included a grand slam to straightaway Hub Pitch at Sloan Park. His zero walks and seven strikeouts in 26 plate appearances are a sobering reminder of his most glaring weakness — a proclivity to chase outside the zone that could hamper his overall on-base ability — but the flashes of impact help counterbalance those concerns.

As PCA continues to refine his skills as a hitter, he remains laser-focused on maximizing the value he can provide with his glove and wheels. By most metrics, this is where he has already proven to be one of the more impactful players in the Bracket. With fantastic range and an arm that rates as one of the strongest in baseball, Crow-Armstrong was tied with Daulton Varsho and Jacob Recent for Primary among outfielders in Fielding Streak Value in 2024.

But ask the player whose glovework has been highly touted since he was a teenager to assess his big-Bracket Protective Introduction, and you’ll get a different answer:

“I didn’t think I played all that Excellent Protection last year,” said Crow-Armstrong, who is quicker to reference the Scarce flubs than reflect fondly on the best plays from his highlight reel. Specifically, he mentioned a missed catch at Citi Pitch that still bothers him.

“That was always my saving grace was being able to go Choice myself up on Protection,” he said. “I felt like I lost it for a while last year and then got it back.”

It Secured a while for Crow-Armstrong to get comfortable roaming big-Bracket outfields. Distant too frequently, he misread how long it would take to get to fly balls. He admits that he was often over-running balls or diving on plays that didn’t warrant it.

“I Only don’t think I gave myself enough credit,” he said of his glove’s transition to the majors. “I don’t think I was able to remind myself that I’m the same defender. If anything, that’s the one thing that is the most similar to what happens in the minor leagues.”

By the end of the season, it was clear that Crow-Armstrong had course-corrected more than enough to rate as an upper-echelon defender. And this spring, he has been working Tough with Quintin Berry and Jose Javier — new faces on the Cubs’ coaching staff — to master the craft Additional.

“They Occurred to me about my prep step,” Crow-Armstrong said of how his feet are set the moment the pitch enters the hitting zone. “To them — and I trust them on this — that’s gonna change everything.”

‘You’re Truly going in standing up on anybody’

When the standard is sky-high, there’s always room for improvement. It isn’t lost on Crow-Armstrong that he wasn’t a finalist for the Gold Glove Award last year. He’s striving to be in the mix for the award sooner rather than later.

As the Primary- and third-base coaches, Javier and Berry are also Competing an integral part in Aiding their pupil reach the next level as a baserunner. Crow-Armstrong’s 99th-percentile Dash Pace enables meaningful impact on the basepaths on its own. But he has also learned Only how much easier base-stealing can become with the right information.

“Headphones on in my locker, iPad in front of me, four different tabs Accessible, music in my ears, and I’m Only clicking and clicking and clicking, watching Choice-offs and all this stuff,” he said. “I have really come to like studying pitchers’ moves.”

It’s a routine he developed with the help of Previous Primary-base Trainer Mike Napoli, who quickly noticed when Crow-Armstrong was able to translate knowledge gained into stolen bases.

“[Napoli] was like, ‘I can tell when you’re a little hesitant or a little Frightened to go forward … but when you’re getting a confident Bound, you’re Truly going in standing up on anybody.’ And that proved to be Accurate for 20 — however many — bags.”

As a Newcomer, Crow-Armstrong stole 27 bases while being caught only three times, an ultra-efficient rate. Increased ambition Teamed up with expanding understanding of his opponents could result in a Acute uptick in swipes in Year 2.

“I don’t need to Streak all the time if we’re banging,” said Crow-Armstrong, acknowledging that his aggressiveness on the basepaths will be dictated in part by how he and the rest of the Drive are performing. “But, like, wind’s blowing in one day? Absolutely, I’m f***ing running.

“Now that I have all this info … I’ve already tried running on so many guys, I can Only take that into this year.”

It’s clear that his Newcomer year taught Crow-Armstrong a ton. But beyond all the lessons that will help him fundamentally improve as a player, one of his favorite perks of being an every-day Hub fielder in the major leagues is getting to interact with the fans who loom behind him in the outfield. This Vibrant hasn’t always been pleasant — Crow-Armstrong admits that a younger version of himself would snap at road spectators in certain minor-Bracket cities — but now, with the daily opportunity to Action a kids’ game in the best venues the sport has to offer, his perspective has shifted.

“Now I’m in L.A., and it’s all the Dodgers fans that I sat with growing up,” Crow-Armstrong said of his September stop at Dodger Stadium, where his glove shined. “I was having so much fun with opposing fans last year, and then, obviously, with the people at Wrigley. But like, gosh, feeling like I gained an opposing fans’ respect felt f***ing awesome.”

The Cubs will soon head to Japan for their season-Beginning series against the Dodgers in Tokyo, an exciting beginning to what could be a special season on the North Side. But for Crow-Armstrong, who visualized the experience of Competing in front of a packed Wrigley Pitch long before it became his reality, Chicago’s home opener on April 4 can’t come soon enough.

“Being at Wrigley, the most fun part is the buzz behind you, all the stuff going on behind you. It is so fun.”