41 home runs. 35 stolen bases. 9.7 WAR. 17 games still to play. Pete Crow-Armstrong is on the verge of becoming the only player in MLB history to post a 40-40-10 season. The Cubs have him. The Mets had him — and sent him to Chicago in July 2021 for 47 games of Javier Báez. That’s the whole trade. That’s it.
What Happened in July 2021
It was the trade deadline and the New York Mets needed a shortstop. Francisco Lindor was hurt, and Javier Báez was his close friend — a two-time All-Star and Gold Glove winner. On July 30, 2021, the Mets sent Chicago a minor-league outfielder — their own first-round pick from the 2020 draft, 19th overall — plus cash. The Cubs sent back Báez and starter Trevor Williams.
The kid heading from New York to Chicago was 19 years old, had all of six professional games under his belt, and was recovering from a shoulder injury. Most analysts called him a consolation prize for a rebuilding organization. His name: Pete Crow-Armstrong.
Báez played 47 games for the Mets. Forty-seven. Then he left as a free agent and signed with the Detroit Tigers — five years, $140 million, exactly $15 million more than New York was willing to offer. The Mets ended up without the shortstop and without the prospect.
Five Years Later: The ‘Consolation Prize’ Is Chasing History
As of September 7, 2026, Pete Crow-Armstrong is slashing .281/.376/.577 with an OPS of .953 for the Chicago Cubs. That’s 41 home runs, 35 stolen bases and 97 RBI in 145 games. His 9.7 WAR leads every position player in the majors.
On September 6, he hit his 40th home run off Miami’s Tyler Phillips — a 403-foot shot at 111.2 mph exit velocity. With that swing, he became the youngest player in Cubs franchise history to reach that mark, passing Ernie Banks by 49 days. He also became the first Cub ever to hit 40 home runs and steal 30 bases in the same season.
The 40-40-10 season still isn’t done — he needs five more steals over the final 17 games — but the pace is there. It would literally be the first time any player in MLB history has put together that combination. For context: only Ronald Acuña Jr. (2019), Alex Rodríguez and José Canseco had reached 40 home runs with 30 steals at age 24 or younger. PCA is already on that list.
The defense is just as absurd. He leads the majors in Fielding Run Value (+26) and Outs Above Average (24). He doesn’t just hit — he takes away runs too.
His contract runs through 2032. He’s owed $115 million over six seasons starting next year. The Mets had him for free.
The Numbers Behind the Season
PCA doesn’t show up at the top of every leaderboard by accident. Here’s what Statcast has on him through 2026:
- 650 plate appearances
- 41 home runs, 97 RBI
- AVG: .281
- OPS: .953
- xwOBA: .374 (what his contact quality says he should be doing)
- Average exit velocity: 90.5 mph
- Barrel rate: 13.5%
- Hard-hit rate: 49%
- Average bat speed: 74.9 mph
Where he ranks across MLB:
- xwOBA: 94th percentile (elite)
- Bat speed: 83rd percentile
- Barrel %: 89th percentile
- Hard-hit %: 90th percentile (elite)
- Sprint speed: 96th percentile (elite)
