Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong is putting together a career-best season, with the team sharing news of a league-leading stat on his defense.
The Cubs are on pace for a historic season for Outs Above Average, with Crow-Armstrong leading the way for the defensive-minded team. The Cubs shared news of Crow-Armstrong’s league-leading status as the team prepares for a critical series against the Washington Nationals.
Pete Crow-Armstrong Adds Another Accomplishment in Stellar Cubs Season
As Jordan Bastian of the team’s official website noted, the Cubs are already within range of the all-time record for Outs Above Average in a single season.
“Entering Sunday, the North Siders had 58 Outs Above Average as a team, per Statcast,” Bastian wrote. “The 2017 Twins boast the single-season record (66) in the 10-year time period in which OAA has been tracked.”
The report noted that the Cubs have several players registering stellar OAA numbers, with Crow-Armstrong leading MLB.
“Looking at OAA, the Cubsâ entire group of infield-outfield regulars is above average: Crow-Armstrong (22), Swanson (15), Hoerner (six), Alex Bregman (five), Michael Busch (four), Seiya Suzuki (four) and Ian Happ (one),” the report noted. “The same goes for Fielding Run Value, with Crow-Armstrong (24) and Swanson (10) leading the way.”
Crow-Armstrong is also having a breakout season at the plate, hitting a slash line of .286/.388/.544 with a .932 OPS with 26 home runs and 30 stolen bases in 119 games.
As Karl Rasmussen of SI.com noted, Crow-Armstrong has now surpassed Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani as the MVP favorite.
“Ohtani is dealing with a lingering knee injury, which has resulted in him being removed from the Dodgersâ rotation as he looks to get back to full strength. He hasnât pitched since July 3âthough heâs still suiting up as the DH in L.A.âand that absence from the mound has opened the door for Crow-Armstrong to overtake him in the MVP race.”
Defense Attracted Dansby Swanson
Bastian noted that Dansby Swanson was intrigued by the idea of playing with a stellar defense when he was pondering free agency options this offseason, saying Cubs team president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer sold him on it.
âIt was a pretty big selling point,â Swanson said. âHim kind of saying we have a chance to be really special up the middle as a group.â
The Cubs face an important opportunity, starting a series against the Washington Nationals this week. The Cubs are 5 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central, but could have a chance to make up some ground against the 59-61 Nationals.
Like HEAVY’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Cubs Announce Pete Crow-Armstrong News Before Nationals Series appeared first on HEAVY.