Cubs Willing To Get Back To The Table With Pete Crow-Armstrong

Forbes

5 days ago

While the acquisition of Kyle Tucker was the dominant storyline entering the season, the play of second-year center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong has done more to help the Cubs to a 34-21 start, which through Tuesday was tied with the Dodgers and Mets for the second-best record in the National League.
Crow-Armstrong has been arguably the most complete player in the majors over the first two months of the season. He's hitting .280 with 14 home runs and 14 stolen bases while also delivering +8 Defensive Runs Saved.
The two most used calculations of WAR both credit him for more impact than Tucker, who is having a strong season of his own (.285-12-39 with 15 stolen bases). Baseball Reference's algorithm a 2.9-2.1 edge over Tucker in WAR; Fangraphs has it 3.0-2.4.
The biggest difference between the two, of course, is salary. The 23-year-old Armstrong is earning $771,000 while Tucker, at 28 and in his last year before free agency, is at $16.5 million.
It's possible Tucker's next contract will approach, if not exceed, $500 million. Baseball's twin engines of arbitration and free agency will stop Crow-Armstrong from realizing his market value until 3031, when Tucker is in the sixth season of his next deal, but recent reports suggest he may have his own nine-figure deal before this season ends.
The Cubs have managed Crow-Armstrong brilliantly since acquiring him from the Mets in the Javier Baez trade. The 2020 first-rounder played 240 games in the minors, honing his talents, before arriving at Wrigley Field to stay last April. He made a 13-game cameo in 2023 and played 123 games last season, giving him 170 days service time entering 2025. That's two days short of what's considered a full season, essentially giving the Cubs a seventh full season of control.
Crow-Armstrong is guaranteed of being in the Super 2 class of arbitration-eligible players after 2026, meaning he'll be able to use that economic tool four times if he isn't signed to a multi-year contract. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who has Super 2 status, has earned $70 million from Toronto for four arbitration seasons. Juan Soto ($31 million) and Shohei Ohtani ($30 million) settled on the two biggest salaries in their final seasons in arbitration.
The Cubs are hoping to get some cost certainty with Crow-Armstrong. They did that with Anthony Rizzo (seven years, $41 million in 2013) while going year-to-year with Baez and Kris Bryant.
Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer has acknowledged having attempted to negotiate a long-term deal with Crow-Armstrong during spring training. He told the Athletic's Patrick Mooney the team is prepared to re-enter talks whenever Crow-Armstrong's representatives, Creative Artists Agency, is ready.
'Not talking during the season, to me, that's a player-focused thing,' Hoyer said on Tuesday. 'I'm not playing. I've got time to negotiation if they want.'
The New York Post's Jon Heyman reported the Cubs offered Crow-Armstrong a guarantee in the range of $60-70 million in March before talks were tabled. He said the Cubs have indicated they are willing to increase that offer if Crow-Armstrong wants to return to the table.
San Diego center fielder Jackson Merrill signed a nine-year, $135-million contract extension at the start of this season, setting a record for a non-arbitration player. Merrill was second to Paul Skenes in Rookie of the Year voting in 2024, racking up 5.3 f-WAR with 24 home runs, 90 RBI, 16 stolen bases and +0 DRS. Merrill had one full season of service time when he signed his deal, putting him one year closer to free agency than Crow-Armstrong at this point.
The Cubs would love to keep Tucker and Crow-Armstrong alongside each other through 3030, if not beyond. But all indications point to Tucker's desire to let the free agent market determine his value next fall, when the Cubs will have to bid against baseball's biggest spenders.