Pete Crow-Armstrong's Power-Speed Output Could Make Cubs History

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Image courtesy of © Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Pete Crow-Armstrong's 2025 season was etched into Chicago Cubs lore several months ago. 

It's easy to forget that, given how things have gone since. But after being the fourth-fastest player -- regardless of organization -- to reach a 25-25 season back in July (and the fastest Cub to do so), it was clear that Crow-Armstrong was doing something that has rarely been seen from an organizational standpoint. The Cubs have had powerful hitters and the occasional demon on the basepaths, but not in a particularly high volume on one side or the other. And certainly not at once. 

To put Crow-Armstrong's 2025 season in its own context, there are 22 players this season that have hit more than the 28 homers he has on the books as of this writing. None of those hitters, however, has eclipsed 30 steals. That is, of course, except Crow-Armstrong and his 32 swipes. Only Juan Soto's 29 comes close, followed by Jazz Chisholm Jr. at 27, and then a host of players residing farther down the leaderboard. In short, the power-speed combination is Pete Crow-Armstrong first, everyone else later. 

Against his big league counterparts, Crow-Armstrong's output in 2025 reads as similar to where he stands in the broader context of the organization's history. At present, he sits 75th on the Cubs' all-time leaderboard on the home run front for a single season. Only once, however, has someone ahead of him on that list stolen more than the 32 he's swiped this far. What is worth exploring regardless, though, is whether we've seen a hitter top the Cubs in each category in a given season, in the same way Crow-Armstrong is doing now.

Interestingly, the most recent example in the team's history is a player forever connected to Crow-Armstrong: Javier Báez. Drawing comparisons to Báez that extend beyond the trade for one another back in 2021, Crow-Armstrong is now primed to be the first person since El Mago to lead the team in each category. Báez led the way with 34 homers and 21 steals in 2018, when he finished second in NL MVP voting. Anthony Rizzo nearly did so as well in 2015, leading all Cubs with 31 home runs but falling three steals short of Dexter Fowler's 20.

 

Before Baéz, Alfonso Soriano was also almost able to accomplish the feat in 2008 but came up three steals short of Ryan Theriot's team lead in steals. Instead, we have to look to a lower steal volume to find the only other time it's been done since the turn of the century. Derrek Lee was able to do it in 2005 when he hit 46 homers and stole just 15 bases. 

Speaking of recent Cubs Hall of Fame inductees, there's a healthy Sammy Sosa component to all of this. That legendary 1998 season in which Sosa hit 66 home runs? He also stole 18 bases, which stood alone atop the leaderboard for the team that year. He also did it during the 1993 season (33 homers, 36 steals) and in 1995 when he went for 36 home runs and 34 steals. There was a near-miss for Sosa in each of 1996 and 1997, too, but he fell short of Shawon Dunston and Brian McRae in the steals game each year, respectively. It's easy to forget how good Sosa was on the basepaths in the earlier portion of his career, but he possessed exactly that power-speed combo we're talking about. 

A list such as this would be incomplete without Ryne Sandberg, as well. Similar to Sosa, Sandberg had a smattering of years where he was in the mix for the team lead in both. His ability to serve as a two-way threat was most present in 1990, when he topped out at 40 homers and 25 steals, the latter of which was tied with Dunston for the team lead. He'd also done it in 1992 (26 homers, 17 steals) and in kind of an inverse way a few years earlier in 1985, when he hit 26 home runs and swiped 54 bags. 

The wild thing is that running back 40 years brings us to what is effectively the end of the list. The mid-20th century doesn't feature much in the way of power-speed blends, despite some standouts on either side. Realistically, you'd have to go back to the 1880s to see it done again. Which puts into perspective just how rare Pete Crow-Armstrong's potential feat actually is (of course, he has to complete it first).

The steal side of things is essentially wrapped up for Crow-Armstrong. Kyle Tucker's 25 is the runner-up to his total, with Nico Hoerner sitting one more back at 24. Tucker's lingering calf iinjury is likely to pin down that number throughout September as the Cubs ease him back in, and Hoerner's only stolen five bases since the beginning of August, leaving his pace in doubt. The team's steal title is all but sewn up for the center fielder. 

Things aren't quite as sure on the power side, however. Seiya Suzuki trails Crow-Armstrong by just one and Michael Busch is behind by two. None have been particularly impressive in the second half, but Crow-Armstrong's absence of power in the second half is notable given how narrow the gap is. So, it stands to reason that he may join the ranks of near-misses before the month comes to a close. 

Or he could enter a group of names that includes the likes of Sandberg, Sosa, Lee, and Báez. Not too bad, if it comes to fruition.

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