CHICAGO — Pete Crow-Armstrong‘s frustrations had grown visibly apparent Monday afternoon at Wrigley Field. Through five innings of the Cubs’ series opener against the Braves, the All-Star center fielder had a groundout and a flyout, and could be heard angrily screaming after the latter.
“I think there’s natural frustration for a guy like him,” said president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer, acknowledging the lengthy slump Crow-Armstrong was enduring coming into Monday’s game. “Some guys, you don’t see it. With him, you’re going to see it, and I think that’s OK. That’s who he is, and he shouldn’t change that.”
Come the sixth, Crow-Armstrong decided to put his exasperation aside and end his month-long funk by any means necessary.
Down 0-2 with two outs and a man at first, Crow-Armstrong laid down a bunt and sprinted safely to first base. It was the first two-strike bunt hit in the Majors this season.
It also sparked a Cubs rally. Dansby Swanson followed with a two-run double, sending Crow-Armstrong from first to home in 9.62 seconds and cutting deeper into what was once a 6-1 hole. On a day when it seemed Crow-Armstrong’s struggles were getting the best of him, it was just one of many ways he was still able to help his team complete a come-from-behind, 7-6 walk-off win in the 10th.
Carson Kelly kept the momentum going in the eighth by blasting a game-tying, two-run shot off Braves reliever Pierce Johnson. He then sealed the victory in the 10th, singling home Seiya Suzuki for the winning run.
The Cubs were in the position to complete the comeback thanks in large part to Crow-Armstrong’s contributions throughout the day. Along with his bunt single that kept the sixth inning alive, the 23-year-old flashed a pair of defensive highlights Cubs fans have grown all too familiar with this year.
In the first inning, with two outs and men at the corners, Crow-Armstrong appeared to misread a Michael Harris II liner. Yet he somehow still made the grab despite awkwardly falling backwards. Six frames later, Crow-Armstrong dashed 95 feet in 4.7 seconds on an Ozzie Albies drive to left-center, making a sliding catch to end the seventh.
