CHICAGO – Pete Crow-Armstrong quipped on Friday that it was nice to see the crosstown fans leaving Wrigley Field early. Given the way the Cubs center fielder played throughout this Rivalry Weekend, White Sox fans will probably be happy not to see him for a while.
In Sunday’s 6-2 win over the White Sox, Crow-Armstrong kept his foot on the gas, legging out a double and a triple to help ignite a pair of rallies for the North Siders. With the win, the Cubs extended their franchise-record winning streak against the White Sox to eight games, taking the lead in the all-time series, 75-74.
Crow-Armstrong appreciated the environment inside the old ballpark all weekend.
“Obviously, I’m a little biased when I’m standing right in front of them,” Crow-Armstrong said. “They were in it all weekend, especially today. All day. I love feeding off a good Wrigley crowd, because there’s no bad day when the bleachers are filled. They show up every day.”
That said, Crow-Armstrong certainly did his part to energize his audience, too. The Cubs’ 23-year-old center fielder finished the series 8-for-14 (.571) with a homer, double, two triples, four runs scored, nine RBIs, one stolen base and 16 total bases.
Crow-Armstrong pulled off a leadoff triple in the first inning that nicked the glove of White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr. and bounced away toward the bricks and ivy. Crow-Armstrong raced into third, sliding in head-first and losing his helmet in the process. When he shifted to his knees, he pounded his chest in celebration.
“It felt like he was just floating around the bases there,” said Cubs starter Colin Rea, who worked 5 1/3 solid innings and now has a 2.38 ERA on the year. “He’s fun to watch run, for sure. Just having someone like him at the top of the lineup right now is fun to watch.”
After the win, Crow-Armstrong was asked if he enjoys a leadoff home run or triple more than the other.
“Whatever puts a run on the board,” he replied.
The triple did the trick, as Crow-Armstrong was able to head home on a sacrifice fly to left field off the bat of Seiya Suzuki.
With the score caught in a 1-1 deadlock in the sixth, Crow-Armstrong stepped in after Vidal Bruján’s leadoff single halted a run of 13 consecutive outs recorded by White Sox righty Jonathan Cannon. Crow-Armstrong pulled a full-count cutter up the right-field line, where it ricocheted off the tarp along the side wall.
From the jump, Crow-Armstrong was thinking about pulling off a double.
“Definitely,” he said. “The kicks we get here are awesome sometimes. That tarp’s nice.”
Bruján slowed down at third base on the play, but changed course when he saw Crow-Armstrong drew a throw from right fielder Michael A. Taylor. With that opening, the Cubs infielder raced home, narrowly beating the relay throw to the plate from White Sox shortstop Chase Meidroth.
The White Sox challenged the ruling, but the safe call stood and the play sparked a three-run outburst in the frame.
“Certainly our ability to capture a second base is always going to be helpful,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “[Bruján] had the stop sign, and then you see the play kind of unfolding. He took a risk and it paid off.”
Crow-Armstrong cracked a smile when asked about Bruján’s effort.
“That’s aggressive,” Crow-Armstrong said. “When you can kind of push the envelope like that, that’s really easy to learn from, whether you’re safe or out, just because you kind of see what you can do for yourself. Bru’s fast and he can move. Personally, I loved that play.”
From the start of the season, that kind of aggressiveness has been a part of this Cubs team’s identity.
Entering play on Sunday, the Cubs ranked second in the Majors with 5.0 baserunning runs above average. In the three-game sweep of the White Sox, the North Siders were 9-for-9 on steals, giving them 59 on the year with an 86% success rate. The Cubs also headed into Sunday with an MLB-best 37% run-scoring rate (percentage of baserunners who eventually score).
Crow-Armstrong has played a crucial part in that aspect of the Cubs’ offense.
The center fielder has also just been a thorn in the side of the White Sox.
“He’s a good hitter. He’s been red hot,” Cannon said. “He's kind of hit everything we've thrown him all weekend.”