Pete Crow-Armstrong draws impressive comparison from Andrew McCutchen that Cubs fans will love

Pete Crow-Armstrong is just weeks away from cementing a historic 40-40 Chicago Cubs season with an MVP Award. His performance in the playoffs was deeply disappointing, but the sting of that will soon be left behind for the celebration of everything he accomplished with the bat and while roaming center field. Already, he's been named Baseball America's Player of the Year and a finalist for the Hank Aaron Award, but he's also expected to take home not just a Gold Glove, but a Platinum Glove for an absurd defensive season in which he paced the league with a 26 fielding run value and 25 outs above average.

In the end, his slash line of .280/.372/.570 and 157 wRC+ reflected his almost unbelievable improvement at the plate from last season. Only Yordan Alvarez, the expected AL MVP, racked up better numbers overall. The baseball world was certainly put on notice by his rapid ascent to superstardom, including a fearsome former rival — Pittsburgh Pirates great Andrew McCutchen.

"Cutch" recently received a fan question on MLB Network asking who the modern Andrew McCutchen is in baseball. While he admitted the comparison wasn't one-to-one, his first thought was none other than PCA. He never hit 40 home runs or stole 40 bases like the Cubs center fielder, but McCutchen appreciated his flair for the dramatic. It also helps that the way Crow-Armstrong rests his bat on his shoulder at the plate somewhat mirrors what a young McCutchen looked like from the right side.

Pete Crow-Armstrong gets ultimate compliment from Andrew McCutchen that speaks volumes

It's almost hard to start thinking about the "next" McCutchen since, well, he still played 39 games with the Rangers this year. However, his days of being one of the game's premier stars are behind him, and there's some uncertainty about whether he'll be back in 2027, especially since he just turned 40. Cubs fans would have nothing to complain about if PCA's prime looked like the 2013 MVP's, though.

McCutchen was only a year older than PCA was when he made his big-league debut, though he found a bit more immediate success at the plate. Like Crow-Armstrong, however, he truly hit his stride in his third full, or close to full, season in the league. From 2011 through 2015, only Mike Trout accrued more WAR than McCutchen's 34.2, and his .302/.396/.509 slash line and 151 wRC+ in that time ranked fifth-best in baseball, ahead of prodigious sluggers like Paul Goldschmidt, Bryce Harper, and Ryan Braun.

As a hitter, his very best season in 2014 was arguably even better than Crow-Armstrong's. Granted, he did it in around 80 fewer plate appearances, but he peaked at a stellar .314/.410/.542 line and 169 wRC+. Defensively, the two aren't quite as comparable. While Cutch had his fair share of highlight-reel plays in the field and won a Gold Glove in 2012, he often ended up in the negative in terms of defensive runs saved throughout his career.

That doesn't change the fact that he was among baseball's best in the 2010s and, beyond his five-year peak, he still strung together some strong seasons. Only once in his first 11 seasons did he have a wRC+ below 120. Frankly, that'd be a great career if PCA ends up close to that. If he posted comparable numbers to McCutchen's peak over the next four years with his defense, the Cubs would have a perennial MVP contender on their hands. Considering they're likely about to lose arguably their second-best hitter in Seiya Suzuki, that would certainly help keep this offense anchored.

Crow-Armstrong has his own style of play, but that kind of comparison to a guy who followed a similar trajectory and maintained his absurd numbers across a five-year stretch is heartening. There's reason to fear some regression next year. Yet, it's good to hear such an exciting endorsement from McCutchen. Cubs fans can dream of their own superstar following in the footsteps of one of their rivals' best and most likeable faces in recent memory.

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