CHICAGO – During a break in play in Detroit last month, Pete Crow-Armstrong walked off second base to have a chat with Javier Báez. The young Cubs center fielder gave the former Cubs star – playing shortstop for the Tigers on this night – a quick hug on the infield at Comerica Park.
“That was my full-circle moment, surreal moment with him,” Crow-Armstrong said. “That was probably my moment where I really appreciated most how our paths have aligned.”
That brief exchange in the ninth inning on June 6 was a meeting of baseball magicians from the Cubs’ past and present – forever linked by a trade that helped reshape Chicago’s core. It was also just a taste of what comes next: taking the field as starting outfielders in the 95th All-Star Game on Tuesday at the Braves’ Truist Park.
At just 23 years old, Crow-Armstrong won a spot in the National League’s starting lineup, along with Cubs right fielder Kyle Tucker, via the fan vote. Báez, who won a World Series with the Cubs when he was 23, was also voted into the American League’s lineup after a bit of a career renaissance in the first half as a versatile defender for the Tigers.
Crow-Armstrong’s popularity is surging – MLB just noted his jersey ranked 18th in sales in the first half – and his initials make it easy for fans from the Tokyo Dome to Dodger Stadium to Wrigley Field to join together in chants of “P-C-A!” It is reminiscent of the days when “Ja-vy!” was the chorus repeatedly bellowed from the stands.
“Part of that is how he plays,” Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said earlier this season. “He does things that are wild. Javy’s a good comp in the sense that Javy would do things that people would be talking about the next day.”
That is one of the reasons “El Mago” was one of Crow-Armstrong’s favorite players growing up.
Báez debuted with the Cubs at 21 years old in 2014, when Crow-Armstrong was 12 years old and had decided to root for the North Siders. While Crow-Armstrong was raised in Los Angeles, his dad, Matt, was from Naperville, Ill., outside Chicago. It took some time, but he got his son to latch onto the Cubs a few years before the ’16 World Series triumph.
Crow-Armstrong loved Báez’s athleticism, flair for the dramatic and ability to pull off plays that seemed impossible.
That sure sounds familiar.
“It feels great, honestly, that people look up to me,” Báez said during a road trip to Chicago last month. “That’s what I tell young guys, to not copy, but to take some stuff from the players they look up to. Just do it yourself in your style, and if it works, you have to keep using it.”
Crow-Armstrong is happy to pick up the mantle for Báez in that way, especially given how Cubs fans have responded to his own high-octane style of play.
“It’s the Chicago Cubs,” Crow-Armstrong said. “I take pride in putting on the jersey every day. He obviously was a part of a couple really good teams here. That’s really why I show up to work every day, is to try to re-create that.”
Crow-Armstrong is one of the driving forces behind the Cubs being in playoff position via a potent offense and strong run prevention. He is the fastest player in Cubs history to reach 25 homers and 25 steals in a season, and the fourth-fastest to those marks in MLB history. Crow-Armstrong has also dazzled in center, routinely defying the eyes and Statcast’s catch probability.
“When a ball gets hit and then you kind of look to the outfielder,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said, “if you do this enough, some outfielders are just starting to move. And it feels like Pete’s already ran three steps.”
When Báez and the Cubs won the World Series, a 14-year-old Crow-Armstrong watched the Game 7 victory over Cleveland with his dad. Four years later, Crow-Armstrong was drafted in the first round out of Harvard-Westlake High School in L.A. by the Mets. That set the stage for his path to align with Báez for the first time.
In ’21, as the Cubs worked to reorganize their roster through a series of blockbuster trades, they teamed with the Mets on a deal that sent Báez to New York. Cubs assistant general manager Jared Banner worked in the Mets’ player development when Crow-Armstrong was drafted in ’20 and saw him play during instructional league that fall.
“I remember being shocked by his athleticism,” Banner said, “running down the line in under four seconds and hitting 107 mph exit velocities on homers, all fresh out of high school. He stood out immediately.”
As different names and trade iterations were floated, Banner was among those advocating for Crow-Armstrong. Hoyer got the deal done, landing the center fielder for Báez and righty Trevor Williams.
Crow-Armstrong is now electrifying crowds in similar fashion to the player he grew up idolizing.
“I love the way he plays with, like, palpable enthusiasm,” Hoyer said. “I think that’s contagious. Fans love that. He checks a lot of the really exciting player boxes, if you’re thinking about guys that are fun to go to the ballpark to watch.”
It should be no surprise then that Crow-Armstrong’s showmanship has reminded Cubs fans of Báez.
“If they’re saying it,” Báez said, “it’s for a reason.
“I’m just looking forward to taking a picture with him, honestly, so I can have it as a memory,” Báez told MLB.com’s Jason Beck this weekend. “I talked to him during the [regular-season] game at second base. He’s a really nice guy. It feels good to [know] the young guys know my career and they know about me. I feel good about that.”