Pete Crow-Armstrong is on the verge of history.
The Chicago Cubs outfielder is just one stolen base away from joining the rare 40-40 club with at least 40 home runs and 40 steals in the same season.
He surged past 40 homers a while ago now, but he still has just 39 steals through Wednesday night’s game against the Miami Marlins.
PCA did have a chance to get that historic bag, though, but he slightly missed his opportunity.
PCA Chance at 40th Steal
Crow-Armstrong worked a walk in the middle of a 0-0 game against the Marlins on Wednesday.
With no one else on base, the Chicago crowd knew what it meant. Crow-Armstrong would have a chance to run.
Except, he didn’t take off right away as Marlins pitcher Ryan Gusto and catcher Joe Mack worked to keep him close.
Seiya Suzuki was at the plate, but he wasn’t swinging right away. With two outs in the inning of a tie game, it would benefit everyone on the Cubs for PCA to get to second base, not just for the history but for the chance of winning the game.
Despite that, Crow-Armstrong didn’t take off for a few pitches. He did get Gusto to throw over twice, which meant that unless Gusto wanted to risk a balk call if PCA was safe again, he couldn’t throw over a third time.
Once that happened, it seemed a foregone conclusion that Crow-Armstrong would start his engines, and he did — but the first time he took off on the pitch, he actually stopped and retreated. He must’ve not liked his jump. Suzuki took that pitch, but it wouldn’t be a steal since Crow-Armstrong didn’t keep going.
Finally, on the next pitch, Crow-Armstrong got a huge jump — but it was a two-strike offering in the zone, and Suzuki swung as he needed to, and he flew out to right field to end the inning.
Crow-Armstrong was close to history, but he didn’t try to take it immediately, and the wait will go on.
Waiting Game
Crow-Armstrong sat at 37 steals for nearly a week before swiping one bag on Sunday and another on Tuesday to get to 39.
One of the tough parts of a 40-40 season is that the guys who hit at least 40 home runs often aren’t starting their trips around the bases on first base. They might touch all four bags and never get a chance, or they might hit for extra bases, which makes stealing tougher than it would be to go from first to second.
PCA should get more chances, and he’ll likely take one, but the mechanics of it all aren’t always simple.
The other risk is if the Cubs solidify their playoff position with a game or two to play, they could always rest Crow-Armstrong to prepare for the postseason. At least as far as achieving the history goes, it’d behoove Crow-Armstrong to make it happen as soon as possible.
Cubs’ Pete Crow-Armstrong 40th Steal Chance Missed in 40-40 Quest