Welcome back to the Cubs Beat newsletter. Jordan Bastian has covered baseball for MLB.com since 2005, including the Cubs since the 2019 season. |
CHICAGO -- Pete Crow-Armstrong broke into a smirk, thinking back to the last time his mom played the role of catcher so he could throw some practice pitches in their yard. Crow-Armstrong estimates he was probably around 11 years old and he had started to reach about 70 mph on his throws. Still, his mom, Ashley Crow, readied herself and young Pete wound up and fired a pitch that went awry. “I smoked her in the thigh. And that was the last bullpen she ever caught,” Crow-Armstrong said with a laugh. “But she wore that like a boss. She was literally just as much a part of my athletic childhood as my dad or another coach. It was awesome.” Crow-Armstrong -- a spark plug of a center fielder for the Cubs and one of baseball’s budding stars -- credits some of his athleticism to his mom, who played multiple sports when she was young. “She was athletic,” he said. “But she obviously went a different route.”
Ashley Crow went into acting, as did Crow-Armstrong’s dad, Matt Armstrong. That, of course, has been well-documented as Crow-Armstrong has gained fame of his own as he has climbed the professional baseball ranks.
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Among baseball fans, Crow is famous for playing the mom in the movie “Little Big League,” in which her 12-year-old son becomes the owner and manager of the Minnesota Twins. That film came out in 1994 -- eight years before Crow-Armstrong was born. It has turned into a fun fact that has followed him throughout his baseball career. All Crow-Armstrong remembers is that his mom played a constant role in his baseball journey. “She was just out there with me in the yard just as much as my dad,” Crow-Armstrong said. “I know that’s not really the case for a lot of people. My mom and my dad played softball together in their actors’ league. She was pretty in tune with how baseball was played.” These days, Crow-Armstrong said, his mom has continued to be a great sounding board for him. “My mom’s super empathetic,” he said. “She would never tell me to do this or do that, but she just always knows what to say when she’s just asking how I'm doing. That’s how she’s invested -- making sure she knows she’s thinking of you. She’s done that my whole life.” |
With Mother’s Day looming on Sunday, Crow-Armstrong also reflected on his favorite memory with his mom since reaching the Major Leagues. Crow-Armstrong’s first day with the Cubs was on Sept. 11, 2023, on the road against the Rockies, but he was not expecting to play until the next day. In the seventh inning that night, then-manager David Ross sent the rookie in as a pinch-runner. His mom was the only person from his personal circle that was able to make it to Coors Field to see his debut. “She was the only one there that was able to make it -- everybody else was there the next day,” Crow-Armstrong said. “It was so last-minute, but my mom still found a way to get out there. She was the only person I got to really hug after my debut and kind of share that moment with. “It was fitting. It was perfect. Her and my dad, man, it was us three growing up. That was a special one.” |
MLB MORNING LINEUP PODCAST |
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Cubs catcher Carson Kelly had eight home runs and 17 walks in his first 20 games this season. Who was the last Cubs batter to have at least eight homers and 17 walks in any 20-game span? A. Kris Byrant B. Derrek Lee C. Sammy Sosa D. Ernie Banks |
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PCA KEEPS DEFYING DEFENSIVE ODDS |
MLB.com’s Mike Petriello recently had a great breakdown of how and why Crow-Armstrong has a knack for making extremely difficult defensive plays look easy in center field. Another example arrived in the fifth inning on Tuesday against the Giants. Jung Hoo Lee drilled a pitch from Cubs righty Colin Rea deep into the right-center field gap for what looked like a sure double off the bat. The play had a 20% catch probability, but Crow-Armstrong keeps defying the odds. Per Statcast, Crow-Armstrong reached a sprint speed of 30.3 ft/sec and had a jump that was 8.3 feet above average on the play. The center fielder covered 94 feet in 4.7 seconds and used a perfectly timed slide to snare the ball before it could find the ground.
“It seems like anything in the air, you feel like he’s going to come down with,” Rea said. “I knew he hit it hard off the bat and it was heading towards the gap, but it’s good to have Pete out there to run that ball down.”
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• Cubs “optimistic” Shota Imanaga’s hamstring injury isn’t serious. Read more >> • Top 100 prospect Cade Horton “an option” to fill in for Imanaga. Read more >> • Imanaga reaches out to Justin Steele for rehab advice. Read more >> • Carson Kelly continuing his torrid start to the season for Cubs. Read more >> • Ryan Pressly on wrong end of historic extra-inning loss. Read more >> |
“One of the things that I’ve learned over my career is that you’ve got to leave your at-bats after they’ve happened and focus on the pitchers. When I put my gear on, it’s over. You flip the switch and you work on your pitchers. And then when I come in the dugout and take my gear off, then it’s hitting. Having those physical changes helps me make that adjustment.” -- Kelly, on balancing catching and hitting duties |
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A. Kris Bryant Bryant had eight homers and 17 walks in a 20-game stretch from April 30-May 21 in the ’19 season for the Cubs. Kelly is the first Cubs player on record to hit each of those marks within his first 20 games of a season. |
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