WASHINGTON -- Surrounded by U.S. history in the shadow of the Capitol, Pete Crow-Armstrong made some history of his own playing America’s pastime.
Crow-Armstrong, who led off the fourth inning of the Cubs’ 8-3 series-opening win over the Nats on Tuesday night with a double, swiped third base before coming home to score. With the steal, his 20th of the season, Crow-Armstrong became the fourth-fastest Major Leaguer in the Modern Era (since 1900) to record 15 home runs and 20 stolen bases in a season, reaching the marks in just 60 games. (Chicago’s center fielder entered the matchup at Nationals Park with 15 homers already.)
Here is who surrounds Crow-Armstrong:
1. Eric Davis (40 games in 1987)
2. Ken Williams (54 in 1922)
3. Bobby Bonds (59 in 1973)
4. Pete Crow-Armstrong (60 in 2025)
5. Bo Jackson (61 in 1989)
6 (tie). Reggie Sanders (62 in 1999)
6 (tie). Chris Sabo (62 in 1990)
That’s some pretty impressive company -- particularly considering Crow-Armstrong is five years younger than Jackson and four years younger than Bonds when they each achieved the feat.
But of course, Crow-Armstrong wasn’t done. After striking out in his first at-bat of the night, he reached base in his next three plate appearances -- the double in the fourth, and a walk apiece in the fifth and sixth innings. He also scored in the fifth, and stole his 21st base in the sixth by swiping second.
“It’s awesome having Pete, just being able to watch Pete,” starter Cade Horton said. “He’s one of the best players in the game. I’ve played with him since high school, and so just seeing him grow and take off this year has been really special.”
The pair of steals marked Crow-Armstrong’s second straight game with at least two steals, his sixth multisteal game of the season and the ninth of his young career. His 21 stolen bases are tied with Luis Robert Jr. (White Sox) for the most in MLB -- just one of a handful of leaderboards on which Crow-Armstrong is among the Top 5.
“Utilizing my athletic ability is always nice," Crow-Armstrong said. “And being able to do things like that’s big, but all in the right kind of circumstances. So if I’m making the right plays at the right time and it’s not flashy, then oh well -- that’s still how I’d like to go about my business.”
As one of the speediest ballplayers in the Majors, both on the basepaths and in center field -- it’s no surprise that Crow-Armstrong has the highest bWAR (3.6) on the Cubs’ active roster.
Just look at that fourth inning. His leadoff double put the Nationals on their heels out of the gate, plus the steal of third -- and, to add even more stress for the Nats, Crow-Armstrong “danced” around the third-base bag, teasing the defense trying to draw a pickoff throw or cause any kind of mistake … and it worked.
“[Pete’s] speed is something that everybody on the field knows about,” manager Craig Counsell said, “and they have to respect it -- and speed causes mistakes.”
Opponents really do know how dangerous Crow-Armstrong -- and the rest of the Cubs -- can be on the bases. And so, as Crow-Armstrong took his lead with each pitch, he upped the stress level -- and, in doing so, helped generate a fielder’s choice by Carson Kelly to put runners on the corners with no outs. Counsell refers to that as “creating a fourth out,” and it’s something the Cubs have had good success with.
“We just get another out,” Counsell said. “And [if] you give this team four outs an inning -- we like our chances, right? We’ve done that a number of times, like, somehow get four outs in an inning. And if you give us four outs, we’re going to score.”
Crow-Armstrong also entered play on Tuesday as the only Major Leaguer on pace for 40 home runs and 40 stolen bases this season. And, if his speed -- which ranks in the top 4% of MLBers -- is any indicator, his pace isn’t slowing down any time soon, even if he’s not too focused on the accolades.
“It's kind of funny,” Crow-Armstrong said. “Like, we’ve got so many specific stats. … I'm not trying to slide it, either. It's amazing company to be in, too; I saw those names. But I'm not at the 40-40 mark yet. We're 60 games into the year, and we're still trying to make sure we win this division.
“Especially just going into the break, trying to create some space for ourselves going into the second half. And you know, the homers will come, the bags will come. I got to get on base first to do any of that. So, yeah, man, I'm just going about my day -- and we get there, we get there. If not, oh well, we're still just -- we're going out here to win ballgames."