Cubs seem to have fleeced the Mets when acquiring Pete Crow-Armstrong

Time is a circle and we’ve re-arrived at the point in our existence as Chicago Cubs fans where we longingly gaze at prospects, awaiting their arrival to the big leagues.

One of those prospects who has taken the league by storm in his still-young professional career is Pete Crow-Armstrong. The 20-year-old outfielder is the Cubs’ No. 3 prospect and the No. 97 overall prospect in the majors. Yes, you heard that right, he’s only 20 years old!

Crow-Armstrong was acquired as part of the trade that sent long-time North Side shortstop Javier Baez and right-hander Trevor Williams to the New York Mets ahead of last season’s trade deadline. The Baez trade might be a sensitive topic for some, although time, distance and his tremendous struggles this season have softened the blow, at least a little.

Focusing on the Cubs’ side of the equation and looking toward the future on the North Side, Crow-Armstrong is an essential piece of the puzzle that will help the Cubs in the major league level sooner than many might think. On May 30, MLB.com reported Crow-Armstrong was being promoted from Low-A Myrtle Beach to High-A South Bend after just 38 games with the team.

Future Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong will be in Chicago soon enough

During his time in Myrtle Beach, Crow-Armstrong slashed .354/.443/.557 with seven home runs and 13 stolen bases. It’s obviously crystal clear why he was promoted. After all, the numbers don’t lie. But, once he found himself in South Bend, Crow-Armstrong began to regress, which was expected since there was no way he could’ve sustained those numbers forever.

Besides being stellar at the plate, he made his presence known in the outfield, making several incredible plays at the wall. The whole package, Crow-Armstrong has Gold Glove potential in his future, and that’s really saying something. So far, he has played nine games with High-A South Bend, but his tenure there has been put on hold due to a bone bruise injury which, according to Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times, could keep him out for up to two weeks.

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So far, Crow-Armstrong is batting .184 with a .631 OPS across those nine games in South Bend. Luckily, his injury is not nearly as bad as it could have been. Crow-Armstrong will have more than enough time to return to South Bend, get back to work and hopefully get hot again. He’s likely not going to kick down the door of Wrigley in the next year, but if he keeps playing like he did early this year, it might not be quite as long of a wait as you think.