Pete Crow-Armstrong already SPECIAL PLAYER for the Chicago Cubs

Pete Crow-Armstrong already SPECIAL PLAYER for the Chicago Cubs

When he was on, he was one of the most exciting players in the league. We review PCA’s 2025. You are Locked On Cubs, your daily Chicago Cubs podcast, part of the Locked On Network, your team every day. You are Locked On Cubs, part of the Locked On Network, your team every day. Alongside Sam Olber, I’m Matt Cozy. Sam and I are lifelong fans taking our passion into discussion with you on all things Cubs. Today’s episode is brought to you by Game Time. Download the Game Time app. Create an account. Use code locked on MLB for $20 off your first purchase. Later in the show, we go over uh the Cubs winning uh the first team defense award from uh Sports Info Solutions and really talking about how that’s their team identity. Uh and two players today we’re going to review that are uh right in lock step with that. Dansby Swanson later and first Pete Crow Armstrong who went 157 games 247287481 with 31 home runs, 37 doubles, four triples, 35 stolen bases, and 95 runs batted in. So much to get to with Pete Sam. He took over the sport at one point, then had a lot of ups and downs, then had a lot of downs, but I think for the most part it was a memorable year for him. The toughest guy, I think, to really put a a one grade on because it it really felt like two completely different seasons. Um, if you wanted to be picky, you would have loved for the way it happened to be flipped where he went into the off season feeling great. Kind of like he did a little bit last year, whereas he started this year. Uh, but to be fair, he actually started the year really poorly and then it was that Dodger series in midappril that flipped everything. Um, Pete was I think Pete in his own way was the season. Like I I And when I say that, I mean when he was at his best, it it also felt like the team was at their best and it felt like something special was happening. Um, I remember jumping on the show uh after the Cubs uh took uh two in a row at Wrigley against the Dodgers and it it felt special. Um I was getting texts from people that that I don’t typically get texts from and um you know the comparisons were starting to come out of PE PCA’s the most exciting uh Chicago athlete since and the answer was either Derek Rose or somebody named Michael. Caleb Williams. Yeah. Well, no, it’s not him. So, it was um it was spectacular and at the same time also had a whiff of of not sustainable and and and what happened that that that came true in the second half of the season. But what Pete was able to do from what was it Matt about midappril through August 1, something like that. Yeah. Yeah. How did you know that? Well, you’ve mentioned it a you’ve mentioned that time frame a lot. Okay. Yeah. Well, and I do have that in front of me. I try and listen when you talk. Um but you know, sometimes I don’t do that. Well, yeah, it’s a high percentage. It’s definitely not 100. No, it’s like a Steph Curry free throw percentage about 91%. Um it was it was it was the I’ll go as far as to say that the pinnacle of the year. Not only that, it was the most must-see stuff from any of any of my teams. So, my teams are not count. Not count not counting Messi. That’s in a different category. Talking teams, Cubs, Bears, Illinois basketball, Illinois football, and then a whiff of the Bulls. It was the most exciting stuff I’ve seen from any any of those guys, that team since probably the Derrick Rose MVP season. I mean, it was it was really like it was, you know, we all have our routines. I mean, it was to the point where it was like, I can’t go on Uber Eats or uh uh or, you know, which I don’t do anymore, by the way. Um, you know, Monarch saved me from that, but I couldn’t uh I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t, you know, go in the kitchen or whatever if Pete was even due up third in an inning. My whole night was revolved around his abs. Uh, and there’s something to be said for that. There is. Yeah, he was he was the most exciting guy in the sport in my mind. And I love your your comparisons there and just reflecting on on your fandom and the other teams. I hadn’t done that exercise yet, but it would seem to me like Well, he’s probably more exciting than the Iowa quarterback situation for most of your life. Absolutely. Yeah. Ricky Stanzy. Yeah, since I was a freshman in college. So Oh, not Wow. Stanzy pull right there. Uh yeah, they made the Orange Bowl my freshman year. That was pretty much it. So, uh, they’ve been good, but yeah, Illinois needs to fire the defensive coordinator. Go ahead. For me, not as much of a consumer of those other teams. He’s the most exciting player at this s of this size and scope that he was though those 90 games, which I’m about to give you here. Yeah. Sammy Sosa, right? And not coincidentally, he was the first 30 3030 guy since since Lamb and Sammy. From April 13th through the entire month of July, a span of 89 games, he hit 287 with 27 homers and 23 steals. The Cubs went 53 and 36, winning nearly 60% of their games. Right. That was the best part of the year. It had to have been uh an exciting, dynamic player. You could tell he was getting more comfortable with his personality. You could tell Craig Council was giving him the elbow room to do that. And not only did he start slow the past two years, but like you mentioned earlier, this year he entered that Sunday night baseball game against the Dodgers in April. he was hitting a buck 97 and and and there was, you know, we were kind of joking like where is he and uh boy did he turn it around quick. Um and and just uh a lot of good memories with him this year at the plate and in center field. Yeah. And and what I want to get into and we could do this in a second. I I want to talk about what the path is for adjustment because yeah, the the the second half was rough and and for that reason I can’t give him an A. I I I wanted to I wanted to give him an A grade because th those 89 games were so electric, but it’s 162 game season for a reason. And um the the the question with P is how do you you know fix what what plagued him? What what went wrong down the stretch and how do you fix that? Um and that’s really what I want to go over. But but for me, Matt, if I had to give him a final grade, uh it’s like a BB B+ish. Okay. I I I like an 87 and a half%. Yeah, I’m gonna go A minus. Yeah, you’re probably more kind. Probably like a 90.3. Yeah. Okay. And uh what can he work on? What can we see him improve in 2026? Let’s get to that right after this. This episode is brought to you by Game Time. The NFL season is back and honestly, there’s nothing better than being in the stadium surrounded by fans cheering on your team. 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You could become a locked odd cubs every day or by joining us for every episode throughout the week. All right, shifting from our grades and reviewing PCA’s 2025 uh season. Let’s let’s go to 2026 because here’s a a player who’s under contract control with the team for for a long time. Uh maybe we could get in, you know, some of the extension stuff that was that was leaked over the summer. Yeah, actually. Was that more like in the spring? That was That was spring. That was right. It was right It was right around the Dodger series if I remember correctly. Oh, so April. Wow. Yeah. Um, so the first thing that comes up for me is, and I also want to ask you about his playoff performance, but yeah. First thing that comes up for me is his his uh swing decisions. Yeah. And I think that has to be number one, especially chasing um chasing VO up in the zone. What about you? So, this is why I want to have this discussion. It’s very it’s very complicated wi-i with somebody like Pete because in baseball, but in life as well. That’s why I love doing this. You could always relate sports and life. You’re trying to find that perfect balance. Okay. But finding that perfect balance is really hard to find. Here’s a couple players that have like a the perfect balance of of swing decisions, contact, and and and pop, right? Uh Juan Sodto comes to mind. He’s getting about $765 million to play the sport. Um the other one that comes to mind is probably Aaron Judge, although he he strikes out a little bit more. U like those guys don’t just walk around and you and you see them at your local convenience store and go, “Hey, you want to play some baseball?” They’re they’re they’re rarities. That’s why they’re Hall of Famers and and that’s why they make a bunch of money. And so with Pete, it’s like, yes, the easy thing to go into the off season is say he’s got to be better with his swing decisions. He’s got to be better at taking pitches. But the bigger step for me is can you can he do that without compensating without sacrificing what makes him so unique and special? Well, what makes him so unique and special? His ability to put his bat on the ball a at pitches up in the zone, down in the zone, hit home runs. His ability to take mistakes and hit home runs. And in the second half of the season, I actually wasn’t sitting there going, “Oh, Pete’s swinging too many bad pitches.” I was more in the camp of Pete’s missing the pitches that what what made him special the first half. So, you have to find that balance. I’m going to talk about that with Matt Shaw uh uh later this week about hey, I get it. You want him to pull the ball in the air more, but what got him to the dance is going to the opposite field. It’s all about finding that happy medium with the player. Um Ian Hap’s another great example. Uh he had a huge hole in his swing with high fast balls. He fixed it, but in order to fix that, he did sacrifice a lot of oppo power to do so. Where is the pushpull, the give take? How much is Pete going to have to sacrifice uh uh with his ability in order to be more selective? Because being selective isn’t something it’s not just something you could practice. It it’s a skill, too. You have to have it. And to be honest with you, it doesn’t feel like he has it. Uh when he takes pitches, it feels like he’s just predetermining that he’s taking them. Uh and so I’m basically saying a whole lot of nothing right now. It’s just the fact that everyone’s going to say, “Well, he’s got to take more pitches.” And that’s fine, but I don’t want him I don’t want Pete hitting, you know, nine home runs next year. If if it if it only means that his OBP goes You said, what was his OBP? 281 or something like that. Yeah. 287. If it’s if he’s going to take more pitches and he’s going to sacrifice a bunch of homers, then his OBP needs to go up like 40 points. If it’s only going to go up like 20 and he’s going to be a 12 homer guy, then that’s not worth it. I’d rather just have this this version. But my point is you’re looking for that perfect balance, but that perfect balance is really hard to find. Yeah. And I think slug would be the thing that would be sacrificed. I’m not going to be that wouldn’t thrill me by any means. Especially if he’s going to hit in the first five spots in the order. Yeah. Which he won’t. Okay. So, you think he’ll hit six, seven, eight, or nine? Yeah. To start the year, it it was a rough ending. And last thing I want to say, he needs to get better at stealing bases in terms of his accuracy, his jumps, his reads. Like everything with Pete I think is about it’s not no natural talent issues. Small things, reading the pitcher, getting a better jump, um knowing when it’s Haps ball, knowing when he just needs to make the call, just very the the intricacies of the game. Well, the little things that add up to the big thing for sure. And uh yeah, I would say pitch recognition, that would be the right phrasing for me. Uh swing, I I don’t think accepting more walks for him is is necessarily the plan. I do think that’s going to be out there. I I think we’ll hear rumblings of that. Yes. But but I I think that would take a lot from from his game. Walk output, you know, increase a little bit. Sure. But, you know, to sacrifice the the slug, um, I think would be the wrong thing to do because, you know, that even includes going gap to gap and doubles and triples and, you know, not only hitting the ball over the fence. Um, and and the stolen bases was a big a bigger story than it should have been. Uh, I I think he got he got well, number one, he didn’t get on base as much, right? Uh, because he just he just didn’t get there safely as much in the second half. Yeah. Number two is just um a too passive of a nature. And uh I think the next level step for him as a player is is less of the predetermination, whether that’s a readoff pitcher at first base. Yep. Whether that’s in the box against any level of pitcher really. Um you know, you try to get in a positive count, do damage. Uh you know, what’s he doing on O? You know, I noticed that more in the playoffs. Oh, if you’re swinging at a ball, see that to me, you need to cut that out. Yep. But but if you’re taking a you know, an a hack 2021 31 and you miss it. Okay. Um you know, that’s that’s going to happen to to everybody. But well said. Um the predetermination, less predetermination. That’s I think that’s a great way to start for Pete. However, I also don’t want him like, you know, it like on a 3-1 pitch 93 right down the middle following it back because he waits that extra half tick. It’s like it’s a Yeah. instinct like what’s the what’s the difference between predetermination and instinct, right? So, those Well, what’s his zone? What Yeah, it’s what’s his happy place? He’s a very it’s it’s a very complicated situation and one that I actually think Craig did a great job of managing this year. Like I I I think he let him be himself. He gave him the keys. I know a lot of people have a big problem with the helmet throwing and things like that. And I think that needs to be taken down a notch. He’s hard on himself for sure. Yeah, but you could be hard on yourself. I think it needs to be taken down a notch, but it doesn’t bother me specifically. It only bothers me specifically when it’s like you’re one for your last 25 and you’re doing it all 24 times. You make an out. And it’s like it’s like, “Hey man, you’re you’re making it out each like don’t be so surprised.” You know what I mean? You’re going to make outs. Yeah, but I just think I think that could just be taken down a notch just like a tad, but it doesn’t bother me specifically. Um, I thought Council did a great job managing him and I think Pete is I thought going into the year Pete was the highest ceiling, lowest floor player for the team and I still think that. Yeah, absolutely. In terms of his offense, he he could be a special player. Yeah, I think he already is. Okay. Okay. Well, that’s encouraging. I think he already is a special player. The question is is is how does that go into like like what type of special Flash is a special or can he be a hey man this guy’s going to be a seven war 270 blah blah blah every year type of guy and and that’s what we’re going to wait to see and find out. Overall, it was a really good year for Pete. And I just think it’s going to be very complicated to work with somebody that that has that many extremes. And he’s another big reason why this team, as Jed Hoyer said in his end of season presser a couple weeks ago, is their identity is is a lot of defense. And Pete’s a big reason why. Nicoer, others, including this gentleman we’re going to talk about uh next, Danby Swanson. Stay tuned. Make sure you’re subscribed to Locked On Cubs on your preferred audio platform or YouTube. That way you don’t miss any of the great Cubs content we’ve got for you. All right, Danby Swanson right now. Matt Shaw later uh this week and in between the rotation and bullpen and that it’s going to be a lot of hot stove from here on out. Uh 159 games Danby Swanson slash244 300 417 with 24 home runs 24 doubles and 77 runs batted in uh first three years with the Cubs. Sam averages of 244 242 244. Yeah. So within points of each other, but uh didn’t walk as much this year. OBP has really been trending down. 328, 312, and now uh 300 is also uh defensive metrics uh when it tick down this year as well. I don’t care pass the eye test in October especially. I thought his I thought defensively he was totally fine. Um, I thought he was really good and and I’m not going to let the metrics influence my grade. He’s the only player in the organization with a guaranteed contract past this next season, which is pretty wild to say. Uh, but he is he signed through 2029. I I just think it’s doing these exercises, by the way, made me realize what a year it was for all the main guys just to play. Yep. Like dude, Danby played 100 159 games. Oh, I thought he had a really Cap, Seya, Bush, B, uh, Her, Pete, and Swanson all played 150 or more games, dude. I thought it was Swanson’s best year as a Cub. How do you like that? I think it was too. Um, absolutely. The only thing he he did at a really low level was hit with runners in scoring position. Um, I think he got heat for it. I think you have to I think we just have to understand that Danby Swanson isn’t a great hitter. Uh when it comes to putting the bat on the ball, hitting for average, as you said, he just isn’t. His job is to play elite level defense, which I think he did do uh and then and then bring some some pop to the table a and be a force offensively. And I think he had 24 homers. I think if Wrigley played like Wrigley normally would have played in 23 or whatever, he probably is a 28 29 homer guy. Um I thought he was the difference in the Cubs winning their first playoff series uh since 2017. And for that reason, I give him a very solid B. Um I I thought he had a B season. I I I really don’t understand. This is the first time that I have a less grade than you higher. I really don’t understand the metrics. Um, are you talking defense? Yeah. Um, I thought I see I thought the regular season he did look a bit slower to me. Did Okay, then maybe I’m wrong. Um, I just I think he’s pretty good over there and Well, he is. He is pretty good. And I I I would have loved to see who’s as elite this year, though. I would have loved to seen him hit like he’s such a gap to gap center field type of home run hitter and it’s just really hard to hit home runs at Wrigley there. And I just I I thought he had a pretty nice season. Honestly, if he hit a little bit better with runners in scoring position, he I think he would have been trending towards a high B, low A for me. I’m going to give him a B. Wow. Yeah. I thought his bat was a little slow on fast balls, which was his bread and butter through his career. That’s true. Yeah. No, maybe I’m being jealous. Yeah. I mean, I I I gave him a B minus. Oh, well, you know, so so but it’s lower than lower than what you gave him first. Why was so far? I was very hard on Dan being 23. I I thought his performance in September of 23 first year. Yeah. Yeah. I thought his performance in September of 23 was a a big reason why the Cubs collapsed down the stretch. He he just he totally collapsed in September. Um and really well not he didn’t collapse, the team collapsed in September, but he really struggled in September, right? uh on both sides and it was really disappointing and then 24 was just kind of meh a and and I thought he did a really good job this year and I want to give him his flowers. He he was really really not effective in the Brewer series at all uh offensively. But I don’t think the Cubs win a playoff series without Danby Swanson. And so to me that that if if you’re if you’re between a C++ B minus, I think you have to give him that jump because of what he did in October uh with the glove even though the metrics might have not loved it. And I wonder if anybody joins him in the guaranteed deal uh club over there. It’s a solo act right now. Perhaps that’ll be his his double play partner, Nicoer. Uh but yeah, Cubs certainly have a lot of flexibility uh for better or worse here moving moving forward. Really should be for the better though, especially entering uh this 2026 campaign. Uh Sports Info Solutions released their Fielding Bible Awards last week. Nicoer won at second base. And it was uh reading this this release from them, Sam, that uh convinced me that yeah, it’s not even a contest with him and Terrain uh and this team’s identity really is is defense. Um her led all second baseman with 17 defensive runs saved. Only two other players had at least 10 runs saved at the position. Uh but the the cool part about this is that they they also did a Fielding Bible defensive team of the year and the Cubs won that. Uh they were only the only team in baseball to have a positive run save total from eight of the nine positions. And I’m sure you can guess the position that didn’t have that. Well, the the Cubs the Cubs have but this is this is their hallmark. Ironically, the only below average defender that that popped off the screen all year was Tucker. Oh, it wasn’t even close. That was that’s that was the position. Pete, excellent. Ian, very solid. Shaw, Brooks Robinsonesque. Dansby, brilliant. Nico her terrific. Michael Bush rock solid. Carson Kelly steady. I mean, those are the guys and they didn’t get hurt. I know. Everyone played. I mean, the And really, they would have had a lot better of a defense if that one guy, what was his name? Uh, you know, made like he made like five errors in two games at third base. Yeah. Workman. And he was supposed to be really good defensively. Yeah. I And I I you know, I I remember who was saying that, but I you know, we’ll we’ll kind of leave that, but no. Oh. Um but uh yeah, so you know Matt Shaw ended up having the everywhere I read this guy was a great defender and he couldn’t field a routine grounder. He couldn’t make the routine play at all. Had trouble throwing. Yeah. No, whoever that was well not one of Jed’s finest or or or or Lances. Anyway, um, uh, Matt Shaw was number four in defensive run saved. Uh, I didn’t realize he was that high up. Matthew Boyd was number three. That’s why he got the gold glove nom. Well, Matt, imagine if Matt Shaw played most of the year. He’s only He’s only behind Kabrian Hayes, who’s just terrific over there, right? He was at AAA that for a while. Hayes might win the platinum. It’s I think it might be between Hayes and PCA for the platinum glove. Yeah. And Raphaela though with the Red Sox might might have a case for that. I’m not familiar with his work. He was number one in DRS in center field. Of course. There we go. Anyway, uh All right. Well, did they have DRS around when when Willie Mays was playing? You know, you just use your eyes and say that’s the best center fielder I’ve ever seen. Yeah. No, really, really fun to watch this team defensively pick it up and make plays and hoping for for for the same in 2026. Yeah. And you say identity. Uh yeah, I’d like to I’d like them to add to their identity of defense and run prevention with pitching. Right. Right. Should go hand in hand. Yeah. Then some time take the next step and some timely hitting and maybe you’re still playing baseball right around Halloween. Wow. Fantastic. Uh, next episode, Kade Horton, Matthew Boyd, and the rotation. Brad Keller, Caleb Theelbar, the bullpen. Be all pitching again in our next episode, and maybe we’ll sneak in a trivia question or two. Our guy JD Locked on Cardinals did a uh Brad Keller episode. Thinks they’re gonna land. Yeah, I’m sure he’ll get a multi-year deal from someone. And you don’t think it’s going to be us? I think there’s a chance, actually. Okay. I do maybe two years 16 M’s. Oh. Oh, wow. Something like this is locked on. Well, now you know why he’s probably not going to come back. Don’t do those deals. And I And I mean, nobody loves Brad Keller more than me. But wow. Well, he might be my he might be our player of the year. We got to figure out a way to vote on that. Oh, that’s such a great question. I think I should vote, you should vote, and the audience should vote, and it should be all worth the same. That’s That’s just a great idea. I’ll set up a Google form. This is part of part of the lockdown podcast network. See, I was thinking the finalists would be Keller, Boyd, Pete, and would that be would that be the main three to vote or Horton? Her and Horton, right? And Willie Castro or it’s a bad take. And maybe Bush. Bush has to be in that on that list. There’s a long list. They won a lot of games. Yeah. All right. So, there’s six names on there, I believe. How about Brazier? Uh, locked on MLB game night. It’s a great second list. Every game every night until a World Series champion is crowned, which could be this week. Uh, game seven, if it gets there, would be Saturday, November 1st. This Saturday, uh, get local analysis on a national scale. Find MLB game night on lockdown MLB on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts. What about uh Bruhan? Yeah, that’s a bridge too far. He’s Sam Olber. I’m Matt Cozy as a long time. Why? Go Cubs.

We explain why Pete Crow-Armstrong was a big reason for the success of the Cubs in 2025. Plus: What PCA needs to improve for 2026, Dansby Swanson posted a nice year, the Cubs have a strong identity on defense, and more.

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