Newest big leaguer has tie to 'Little Big League'
10 things to know about Cubs No. 1 prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong
David Adler
@_dadlerThree years after being selected with the No. 19 pick in the 2020 Draft, Pete Crow-Armstrong is on his way to the Majors. Here are 10 things to know about the Cubs' No. 1 prospect and the No. 12 prospect in baseball, per MLB Pipeline.
1. Crow-Armstrong's parents are both actors. His mom, Ashley Crow, has a long list of roles in movies and television, from "Minority Report" to "Heroes." She even has a baseball classic in her credits -- she played Billy Heywood's mom Jenny in "Little Big League." Naturally, that's Crow-Armstrong's favorite movie his mom has been in.
"The only one I can really think of that I've seen in-depth is 'Little Big League,' because I love that movie, regardless of my mom being in it," Crow-Armstrong told the Los Angeles Times in 2020. "It's a great movie."
Meanwhile, his dad, Matthew John Armstrong, has been in a variety of TV shows such as "House," "The Young and the Restless" and "American Horror Story."
2. In January, MLB Pipeline listed Crow-Armstrong as the best defensive player in the Minor Leagues.
Eight months passed and once it was time to re-evaluate which prospects had the best tools, Crow-Armstrong's defense remained on top.
Plus speed, a strong arm and precision routes in center field are why Crow-Armstrong is considered an elite, 80-grade fielder on the 20-to-80 scouting scale.
3. Crow-Armstrong's extra-base power has grown throughout his time in the Minors. He recorded 20 homers and 46 extra-base hits across 438 at-bats before being called up. In 2022, he had 16 homers and 36 XBH across 423 at-bats.
It seems like that power is most often on display when the bases are loaded. Crow-Armstrong has cranked four grand slams this season, including one on the 16th pitch of an at-bat. He blasted two grand slams in the week prior to his promotion.
4. Although he was born in Southern California, Crow-Armstrong grew up a Cubs fan. Before the 2020 Draft, he told Prospects1500.com that Javier Báez is his favorite player to watch. Little did he know then that he would be involved in a trade with his favorite player in 2021.
5. Crow-Armstrong's Cubs fandom came from his dad, who showed him Kerry Wood's 20-strikeout game when he was a kid. Crow-Armstrong even had a Wrigley Field-esque ivy-covered wall in his backyard when he played Wiffle ball. He got to play at the actual Wrigley Field in the 2019 Under Armour All-America Game, and he walked, stole a base and scored in the game.
6. Crow-Armstrong has hit everywhere he's been. His lowest OPS at any Minor League level is his .829 at Triple-A this year. His slash line through 214 professional games is a fantastic .301/.376/.515.?
Before his 2020 senior season in high school was halted due to the pandemic, Crow-Armstrong batted .514 in 10 games with just one strikeout in 42 at-bats. As a junior, he hit .426 with three home runs and five triples.
7. Crow-Armstrong's high school -- Harvard-Westlake High in Los Angeles, Calif. -- has become a baseball factory. Harvard-Westlake has a trio of talented starting pitchers in the Majors right now: the Orioles' Jack Flaherty, the Braves' Max Fried and the Guardians' Lucas Giolito. All three were also drafted in the first round straight out of Harvard-Westlake, just like Crow-Armstrong -- Fried went seventh overall and Giolito went 16th in 2012, and Flaherty went 34th in 2014. Crow-Armstrong played in the same Little League as Flaherty, Sherman Oaks, and has known him since he was seven.
8. Crow-Armstrong will now share the field with a player who inspired him at a younger age: Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson. Although he never attended college, Crow-Armstrong initially committed to Vanderbilt and told Baseball Prospect Journal that he became a fan of the Commodores as a kid after watching Swanson play for the national powerhouse. Swanson was drafted No. 1 overall out of Vandy in 2015.
9. Crow-Armstrong said in 2019 that Bobby Witt Jr. is the best player he ever played with. The two became friends when they were roommates while playing for USA Baseball. They were members of the 2018 U-18 team that won a gold medal in the 2018 COPABE U-18 Pan-American Championship.
Crow-Armstrong has played for Team USA several times -- he was on the U.S. 18U National Team in 2018 and '19, on the 15U National Team in 2017 and even on the 12U National Team back in 2014, when he pitched and hit.
10. If you want to follow Crow-Armstrong on social media, he's on Instagram at?@petecrowarmstrong.