Pete Crow-Armstrong Went 40–40. Now He Has to Carry the Cubs in October

Pete Crow-Armstrong gave the Chicago Cubs a season that will be remembered long after the final standings fade. He hit 45 home runs, stole 41 bases and became the first Cubs player—and just the seventh player in MLB history—to reach 40 in both categories in one year.

Now comes the test that can define how Chicago remembers this particular team. The Cubs begin a best-of-three Wild Card Series tonight in San Diego, where Crow-Armstrong will have only a few games to turn his remarkable regular season into a postseason run. Game 1 is scheduled for 10 p.m. ET.

Crow-Armstrong can change a game in three places

A pitcher cannot treat Crow-Armstrong as a hitter who only wants to run. He tied for the major league lead in home runs this season, and his nine leadoff homers ranked third in MLB. A mistake on the first pitch could put the Cubs ahead before the Padres have settled in.

If he reaches base, San Diego has a different problem. Forty-one stolen bases mean the Padres must account for him on every pitch. One steal could turn a single or a walk into a run in a series where scoring chances may be scarce.

Then there is his defense in center field. Crow-Armstrong’s range gives Chicago a way to prevent runs as well as create them. That matters against a Padres lineup with Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jackson Merrill, both of whom enter the series swinging well. Crow-Armstrong does not need a three-hit night to influence a close game. A stolen base or a catch in the gap could be just as important.

Last October left him something to prove

This is a rematch. The Cubs beat the Padres in three games in last year’s Wild Card Series, then lost to the Brewers in the Division Series. Crow-Armstrong was part of that run, but his bat did little to drive it: across the two rounds, he went 5-for-27 with a .399 OPS.

That does not make tonight a referendum on whether his 40–40 season was real. It does give him an opportunity to show how much he has grown as a hitter since his first postseason. The Cubs’ offense has grown around him, too. Chicago led MLB with a .765 OPS and led the National League with 218 home runs during the regular season. Crow-Armstrong is its most dynamic player, but he is not its only threat.

Chicago also has reason to feel confident in the matchup. The Cubs won five of six against San Diego this season. Those games will not give them a lead tonight, though, and the Padres enter October with home-field advantage and a bullpen built to protect late leads.

The Padres will make every early chance matter

San Diego is starting Michael King in Game 1. Its plan, if it gets a lead, is to turn the late innings over to a relief group that includes Adrian Morejon and Mason Miller. For Chicago, that makes Crow-Armstrong’s early at-bats especially valuable. A quick lead could force the Padres to chase the game instead of using their bullpen from a position of strength.

There are questions on the Cubs’ side as well. Their starting rotation posted a 4.27 ERA, tied for 18th in MLB, and the bullpen does not have a set closer. If a game becomes a race to the final out, Chicago may need its lineup to do more than scrape together one run.

Crow-Armstrong has spent six months proving he can provide that spark. His 40–40 season is secure no matter what happens in San Diego. But October offers a different kind of opportunity: to be the player who turns a great Cubs season into a series win.

Chicago beat the Padres last year without getting much from his bat. Imagine what the Cubs could do this time if Crow-Armstrong brings all three parts of his game—power, speed and defense—into the biggest games of their season.