Chicago Cubs: Re-grading the fateful 2021 trade deadline

Cubs have a star-in-the-making from the Javier Baez trade last summer

Though this trade looked good for the Cubs at the time, almost a year later it looks downright silly. The Mets were desperately looking to fill the void left by Francisco Lindor’s injury, and Hoyer took full advantage, netting 2020 first-rounder Pete Crow-Armstrong for what wound up being 47 tumultuous games of Javier Baez, and a depth starter in Trevor Williams.

Crow-Armstrong entered 2022 with many questions. How will he respond to his injury? Will he answer questions about his bat? Will he generate any power? The young outfielder has put any doubts to rest with his start to 2022. A Gold Glove-caliber defender, Crow-Armstrong made adjustments to his swing and has put on a clinic at Myrtle Beach.

He has flashed just about everything you could hope for this season. Speed and baserunning? He’s stolen 12 bags in 35 games. Plate discipline? He’s put up 21 walks to 32 strikeouts in 170 plate appearances. Power? He’s flashed the ability to potentially sport at least average power, which was the biggest weakness in his game. All of this, paired with his premier defensive ablility has seem him surge into MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 prospects list.

There should be little doubt that the Cubs have a potentially special player on their hands. Crow-Armstrong is just 20 years old and has flashed all sorts of tools so far.

• Original Grade: A-
• New Grade: A+