Pete Crow-Armstrong’s incredible season has landed him a Chicago Cubs record.
With his two-run home run in the first inning against the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday, Crow-Armstrong became the fastest player in franchise history to 20 home runs and 20 steals in a season, reaching the mark in his 73rd game of the year. The Cubs record had been held by Sammy Sosa, who achieved the feat in his 96th game of the 1994 season.
Armstrong turned on Brewers right-hander Freddy Peralta’s 96.3-mph fastball above the zone, sending it 377 feet into the right-field bleachers for his 20th home run to briefly give the Cubs a one-run lead. The 23-year-old center fielder homered in his second straight game, the third time this season he has gone deep in back-to-back games.
Only three players in major-league history have recorded 20 home runs and 20 steals more quickly than Crow-Armstrong: the Cincinnati Reds’ Eric Davis (46 games in 1987), Oakland Athletics’ José Canseco (68 games in 1998) and San Diego Padres’ Fernando Tatís Jr. (71 games in 2021). Like Crow-Armstrong, the St. Louis Browns’ Ken Williams (1922) achieved the milestone in 73 games.
Crow-Armstrong didn’t hit his first home run until April 13th in the Cubs’ 18th game of the season, giving him 20 homers in a 56-game stretch over 231 plate appearances. Entering Thursday, he had a .292/.320/.639 slash line and .959 OPS in that span.