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Jacob Webb stated the obvious.<\/p>\n
After the Chicago Cubs won 7-5 on Monday in dramatic fashion, the Cubs’ pitcher was asked about the game Pete Crow-Armstrong had and mustered up a very clear homage to the center fielder.<\/p>\n
“It’s pretty special watching him up there,” Webb said. “I’m glad he’s on my team.<\/p>\n
But, the obvious is just that these days with PCA. It’s staring us all in the face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The “M-V-P” chants that ring through Wrigley Field and reverberate through Chicago aren’t just fans clamoring for their favorite player, either. MV-Pete is more than just a fun acronym at this point.<\/p>\n
After Monday’s performance, an NL MVP should be within reach for Crow-Armstrong now.<\/p>\n
By the numbers:<\/p>\n
Crow-Armstrong made history on Monday.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He became the first player since Chris Young in 2011 to lead off a game and walk it off with a home run. In Cubs’ lore, Crow-Armstrong is the first Cubs player in franchise history to ever lead off a game with a home run, and end it with a walk-off home run.<\/p>\n
That homer also brought him into the 30\/30 club \u2013 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases \u2013 for the second season in a row.<\/p>\n
“Today I was like, ‘man, it’s pedal to the metal,'” he said.<\/p>\n
Did he ever mean that, too.<\/p>\n
PCA didn’t just put the pedal to the metal. He went 4 for 5 with two home runs, a walk, a stolen base, three RBI and a strike out. He was a triple shy of the cycle.<\/p>\n
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CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – AUGUST 17: Pete Crow-Armstrong #4 of the Chicago Cubs celebrates after hitting a two-run walk-off home run during the tenth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Wrigley Field on August 17, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by M <\/p>\n
In a season full of incredible moments from the face of the Cubs’ franchise, Monday might have been one of the most memorable.<\/p>\n
Given how he played, the numbers he put up, the milestones he met and the way he ended the game, Crow-Armstrong drew high praise.<\/p>\n
“This might be his best game in the big leagues right here,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “We’ve had a number of these moments this season from Pete.”<\/p>\n
It was an incredible response to a weekend where Crow-Armstrong was the opposite of incredible.<\/p>\n
In his last five games, Crow-Armstrong went 2 for 23 with a home run, a double, three RBI and nine strikeouts. That led to a mentality change heading into Monday.<\/p>\n
“Have some conviction in the swings that you’re taking,” Crow-Armstrong said. “Don’t be afraid to swing and miss, kind of stuff. Simple as that really.”<\/p>\n
M-V-Pete:<\/p>\n
When asked about his NL MVP candidacy, Crow-Armstrong brushed it off. He talked about his teammates. He deflected it all.<\/p>\n
It’s a talking point for sports talk radio hosts and columnists instead of something he spends time thinking about.<\/p>\n
“When you play a game like we did tonight, that’s all the fun that I need in my life ever,” he said. “It’s been really fun watching Jacob Webb pitch. I have much more fun doing that than paying attention to any of that stuff.”<\/p>\n
But, at this point, you can’t deny Pete Crow-Armstrong.<\/p>\n
With nearly a whole month left of baseball, Crow-Armstrong could be the seventh player to ever reach the 40-40 Club with 40 home runs and 40 stolen bases. Dodgers star, and Crow-Armstrong’s main competition for the NL MVP, Shohei Othani did it last year as he created the 50-50 Club.<\/p>\n
But, Othani’s claim to a fourth-consecutive MVP award was how he’s starring as a two-way player that boasts a 1.79 ERA that has also hit 29 home runs. Othani hasn’t pitched since July 3, and will eventually return to the mound in September.<\/p>\n
You can’t deny Crow-Armstrong, though.<\/p>\n
This isn’t to say Crow-Armstrong deserves the NL MVP outright. There’s still so much more baseball left to play.<\/p>\n
Picture this, though: The Cubs end up catching the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central race and Crow-Armstrong is a key factor in winning the NL Central while he enters the 40-40 Club. If that happens, then Crow-Armstrong shouldn’t just be in the conversation for the NL MVP. At that point, he should lead it.<\/p>\n
Especially if there are more moments like Monday.<\/p>\n
“It was an amazing game,” Counsell said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He’s right. Monday’s game had a playoff atmosphere, which is the kind of environment that demands the most out of great players and leaves others behind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That sentiment is also applicable to just Crow-Armstrong, too.<\/p>\n
“Expectations you might have for him,” Cubs pitcher Shota Imanaga said. “He always surpasses them.”<\/p>\n
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