Pete Crow-Armstrong has been a revelation this season for the Chicago Cubs, a five-tool phenom combining all-world defense in center with surprising power at the plate. Lately, though, some cracks have begun to show: The Cubs have lost four of five games after a 6-2 loss to the New York Mets on Sunday, and that recent skid has coincided with a bit of a slump for their bright young outfielder.
PCA has a .670 OPS over his last seven games, and he's put up a measly .232 on-base percentage over his last 54 at-bats. He's still doing damage when he does square the ball up, but his approach at the plate right now doesn't inspire a ton of confidence. Of course, it's possible that this is just one of those slumps that are bound to pop up over the course of a very long season. But it's also possible that Crow-Armstrong is beginning to wear a little bit, as the Cubs ask more of the young star than just about any other outfielder in baseball.
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Cubs putting too much on Pete Crow-Armstrong's shoulders
Even when he's not producing like an MVP candidate at the plate, Crow-Armstrong is always worth having on the field because of the value he brings both on the bases and as arguably the best defensive center fielder in the sport. But that's both a blessing and a curse: Chicago wants to take advantage of his defense at all times, but even the best need a break every once in a while.
Especially in center field, which might be the most physically demanding position in the sport. According to North Side Baseball's Matthew Trueblood, a player has logged over 1,400 innings in center just 38 times in MLB history — and only two of them, Omar Moreno in 1979 and Adam Jones in 2012, have cracked the 1,450 mark that Crow-Armstrong is on pace to clear if he keeps this up.
Crow-Armstrong has started all 41 of his team's games so far this season, playing center throughout. That's an awful lot to ask, even for a player as young and athletic as he is. And there's reason to think that it might be starting to affect his performance at the plate: PCA has started to see his plate discipline collapse of late, with this recent cold spell coinciding with a spike in his swing rate.
Put simply, Crow-Armstrong is up there hacking right now, giving in to his worst tendencies that delayed his offensive breakout last season. It's entirely possible that he snaps out of this soon, and again, his defense remains highly valuable to Chicago even if it doesn't. But the Cubs are going to need the all-around version of PCA to push the Dodgers, Mets and others in the crowded NL, and that might require Craig Counsell to act in his young outfielder's best interest.