MLB Analyst Predicts Cubs Young Superstar Will Be Top Three MLB Player

The 2025 season has gotten off to a dream start for the Chicago Cubs and their fans.

The offseason acquisition of Kyle Tucker has given the team the legitimate MVP candidate it felt it needed, and when healthy, Shota Imanaga has continued to look like the ace he showed himself as in 2024.

Breakout performances from the likes of Carson Kelly, Michael Busch and pitcher Matthew Boyd have supplemented a talented core, and the Cubs sit in first place in the National League Central Division.

But the top individual contributor to the team's success has undoubtedly been outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong, who ranks third among all MLB players in fWAR.

A well-regarded top prospect before the campaign, the 23-year-old lefty has shattered any expectation set for him, and it's allowed Chicago fans to dream on their new star's long-term potential.

Will Pete Crow-Armstrong Be a Top 5 Player in 2030?

MLB analyst Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report published a prediction of the top 30 players in MLB by the time 2030 rolls around.

Based on his pedigree as a prospect and the dominance he's showcased so far this year, he placed Crow-Armstrong at No. 3.

"The Cubs have been lacking a true face of the franchise in recent years and thought they had found one with their trade for Kyle Tucker during the offseason," Reuter wrote. "But there is a strong case to be made that Crow-Armstrong has leapfrogged him into that role with his early breakout performance... His 3.2 WAR trails only Aaron Judge among all players, he is on the short list for the title of best defensive player in baseball."

The only players Reuter rated ahead of Crow-Armstrong were Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes (though he'll almost certainly don a different uniform by then) and Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr.

That means PCA is ranked above superstars like James Wood, Jackson Merrill, Gunnar Henderson and Elly de la Cruz.

It's certainly a possiblity that Crow-Armstrong reaches this sort of ceiling, and his defense and baserunning mean he'll always be a positive contributor regardless of his bat.

But Crow-Armstrong was comfortably below MLB average as a hitter in his rookie year, posting a wRC+ of 87.

If he can continue to hit at the level he's shown in 2025, third may be conservative, as he's been more valuable this season than any of the aforementioned stars and even Witt Jr, but for the ranking of third to feel like a likely scenario, it would be great to see more sustained success from his hit and power tools.