May 17, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs right fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong (4) celebrates after hitting a two-run single against the Chicago White Sox during the second inning at Wrigley Field. Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Cubs Emerging Superstar Pete Crow-Armstrong on Pace for Historic Season

Originally posted on Chicago Cubs on SI | By Nick Ziegler | Last updated May 21, 2025 12:00 PM ET

The Chicago Cubs are having a fantastic season thanks to some of their patience with young players.

With the best record in the National League Central, the Cubs are certainly on track toward accomplishing their goals this year.

Over the winter, the front office was extremely aggressive in an attempt to help support their young core with some high-quality veteran talent.

However, even though it was a significant offseason for the team, a lot of the players that are thriving in 2025 are ones that Chicago developed.

After winning 83 games for two straight campaigns with a fairly young group, the Cubs were poised for a breakout, and it has seemingly arrived.

While there are a lot of players in the lineup who have been performing well, one slugger has stood out this season and looks like an NL MVP candidate.

Is Pete Crow-Armstrong an Emerging Superstar?

The young outfielder for the Cubs was acquired in a trade with the New York Mets a few years ago in exchange for Javier Baez. After the year that he is putting together so far, Chicago has certainly gotten the better end of the deal.

This season, Crow-Armstrong is slashing 290/.325/.585 with 12 home runs, 38 RBI, and 14 stolen bases.

It has been an amazing start to the year for the 23-year-old, and he is currently on pace for a historic 40/40 campaign.

Pete Crow-Armstrong is on pace for:

41 HR
48 SB
131 RBI
124 R pic.twitter.com/PAmpowXNS2
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) May 19, 2025

Reaching that plateau is a rare feat that not many have been able to accomplish in the history of baseball. However, it has happened in each of the last two years in the NL with Shohei Ohtani in 2024 and Ronald Acuna Jr. in 2023.

The young slugger of the Cubs will be seeking to make it three straight years, and join some elite company.

Even though it has been an excellent season, Crow-Armstrong took his bumps last year to earn this.

A lot of credit has to go to Chicago for letting the young outfielder work through his struggles at the plate in the Majors. For multiple months in 2024 he was hitting below the Mendoza line, and optioning him to the minors could have happened multiple times.

However, they stuck with him and let him learn on the job, which has paid off in this campaign.

Now, Crow-Armstrong is looking like one of the best overall players in baseball now that his ability to hit is catching up with both his fielding and talent on the base paths.

While there is still a long way to go to get to the 40/40 club, the young superstar of the Cubs is well on his way.

This article first appeared on Chicago Cubs on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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