Who is Pete Crow-Armstrong? Cubs call up top prospect, son of 'Little Big League' actress for playoff push

Bryan Murphy

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Who is Pete Crow-Armstrong? Cubs call up top prospect, son of 'Little Big League' actress for playoff push image

The Cubs are adding some youthful pop to their roster for the closing weeks of the season. 

Chicago has called up top prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong to help with the team's push for the postseason in 2023. The outfielder is rated as the No. 12 prospect in baseball by MLB, and No. 1 in the Cubs' system by MLB Pipeline.

The center fielder began this year in Double-A with the Tennessee Smokies before he was called up to Triple-A, spending the last month with the Iowa Cubs where he has batted .271/.350/.479 with six home runs and 10 stolen bases in 34 games.

The Cubs currently sit in the second wild card spot in the NL, but have plenty of clubs right behind them, looking to knock them out of contention. Additionally, the team only sits a handful of games behind the Brewers for the division, so a NL Central title is still in reach.

According to MLB.com's Mark Feinsand, Crow-Armstrong is flying out to Denver to join the Cubs for their three-game series against the Rockies. There is a chance the 21-year-old is activated for Monday night's game, but if not, he will be added to the active roster on Tuesday. 

MLB Power Rankings: Braves at No. 1, Mariners making late charge

Here is everything you need to know about Crow-Armstrong, including his scouting report and 2023 stats:

Pete Crow-Armstrong parents

Crow-Armstrong may not come directly from a baseball family, but his mom has baseball ties in Hollywood. 

Ashley Crow, the Cubs prospect's mother, is an actress who starred in the baseball movie "Little Big League," a story about 12-year-old Billy Heywood who becomes the heir of the Minnesota Twins franchise. In the movie, Crow plays Jenny Heywood, Billy's mother. 

The Cubs are calling up prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong.

His mom, Ashley Crow, was the mom of Billy Heywood in the movie "Little Big League." pic.twitter.com/THTWOmXs0r

— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) September 11, 2023

It's a unique coincidence given that "Little Big League" came out in 1994, eight years before Crow-Armstrong was born. 

Crow-Armstrong's father, Matthew John Armstrong, is also involved in acting. He is most notably known for starring in the TV show "Heroes" alongside his wife. 

Not surprisingly given his parents' occupation, Crow-Armstrong was born and raised in the Los Angeles area, where he starred at  Harvard-Westlake before being drafted by the Mets. 

Pete Crow-Armstrong trade details

  • Cubs receive: OF Pete Crow-Armstrong, RHP Trevor Williams
  • Mets receive: IF Javier Baez

Crow-Armstrong was initially a part of the Mets organization, as New York selected him 19th overall in the 2020 MLB Draft.

However, his stint with the Mets was short lived, as a little over a year later, he was included in the 2021 deadline trade that sent Cubs star infielder Javier Baez to the Mets. In addition to Crow-Armstrong, the Cubs received veteran pitcher Trevor Williams. 

The trade certainly has worked in the Cubs' favor, landing a top prospect for a player they were not going to sign to a long-term contract. While Williams is no longer with the Cubs, neither is Baez with the Mets, as he spent the last three months of that season with New York before signing with the Tigers the following offseason.

Pete Crow-Armstrong stats

Here's a look at how Crow-Armstrong has fared each season in the minors.

Year Level PA AVG/OBP/SLG HR SB/ATT BB% K%
2021 A 32 .417/.563/.500 0 2/5 21.8% 18.8%
2022 A, A+ 471 .312/.376/.520 16 32/43 7.6% 21.6%
2023 AA, AAA 500 .283/.365/.511 20 37/47 9.2% 25.8%
Career -- 1,003 .301/.376/.515 36 71/95 8.8% 23.6%

Pete Crow-Armstrong scouting report

The addition of Crow-Armstrong gives Chicago an elite defender in the outfield, while also providing a left-handed bat with pop as an option in the lineup. 

Crow-Armstrong has been regarded as the best defender among the current outfield prospects. His excellent ability to make reads on fly balls, combined with his speed, is what helps him stand out among his peers, and he could be a candidate to take home multiple Gold Gloves in the future. 

"He covers a tremendous amount of ground with his combination of plus-speed and precise reads and routes, and his solid arm strength rates better than most players at his position," scouts on MLB Pipeline said of Crow-Armstrong before the 2023 season. 

Offensively, there is a ton to like about Crow-Armstrong. He has an aggressive approach at the plate, which has worked so far in the minors, but may need some tweaking once he is facing MLB-level pitching.

He had 20 home runs on the season before the call-up to the major leagues, which was influenced by a change in his swing that sees him pulling the ball in the air more often.  

Bryan Murphy

Bryan Murphy Photo

Bryan Murphy joined The Sporting News in 2022 as the NHL/Canada content producer. Previously he worked for NBC Sports on their national news desk reporting on breaking news for the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL, in addition to covering the 2020 and 2022 Olympic Games. A graduate of Quinnipiac University, he spent time in college as a beat reporter covering the men’s ice hockey team.