Pete Crow-Armstrong Joins 40-40 Club in MVP-Caliber Cubs Season

Pete Crow-Armstrong’s 40-40 season has turned him into the clear National League MVP frontrunner.

Crow-Armstrong, who entered Thursday afternoon with 45 home runs, joined MLB’s 40-40 club by stealing his 40th base of the season and strengthened his case for National League Most Valuable Player.

After drawing a leadoff walk to open the bottom of the first inning, he immediately tried for second base, beating catcher Brian Navarreto’s throw with room to spare as the Wrigley Field crowd erupted.

With his white pinstriped Cubs jersey covered in dirt, Crow-Armstrong rose to his feet and tipped his helmet to the roaring audience.

The achievement made him only the seventh player in MLB history to reach both 40 home runs and 40 stolen bases in one season. He joins Shohei Ohtani (2024), Ronald Acuña Jr. (2023), Alfonso Soriano (2006), Alex Rodriguez (1998), Barry Bonds (1996), and Jose Canseco (1988).

Following Shohei Ohtani’s injury-plagued season and time away, Crow-Armstrong has emerged as the heavy favorite for NL MVP during a historic stretch.

Through 158 games entering Thursday, the 24-year-old had a .280/.373/.577 slash line, 45 home runs, 107 RBIs, and 40 steals, along with an exceptional defensive profile.

Crow-Armstrong currently has a 27 fielding run value, the best mark in MLB among defenders, according to Statcast.

“It’s the best position-player season I’ve ever seen in my career,” Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said, per The Athletic.

“He’s going to win the MVP. He’s going to win the Hank Aaron Award. He’s going to win the Platinum Glove. To me, that’s more impressive than any kind of Triple Crown that we would talk about.”

Picked 19th overall by the Mets in the 2020 MLB Draft, Crow-Armstrong was traded to Chicago at the 2022 deadline as part of the deal that brought infielder Javier Baez and pitcher Trevor Williams to the Cubs.

He appeared in parts of the 2023 and 2024 campaigns before delivering a breakout 31-homer, 95-RBI season in 2025 and establishing himself in the Cubs’ lineup.

This season, Crow-Armstrong has cemented his place among MLB’s elite and is in position to become the Cubs’ first regular-season MVP winner since Kris Bryant in 2016.

Source link