Pete Crow-Armstrong Seals NL MVP Award with Historic Achievement

The Chicago Cubs' center fielder reached one of baseball's most impressive single-season marks to cap off his magnificent campaign.

by Joe Najarian

Sep 24, 2026

Pete Crow-Armstrong of the Chicago Cubs.

Mandatory Credit&colon; Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images

Pete Crow-Armstrong is the latest member of the exclusive 40-40 club.

By swiping his 40th base of the season this afternoon against the Miami Marlins, the Chicago Cubs’ center fielder became the seventh player in MLB history to hit 40 home runs and steal 40 bases in a single season. PCA entered the day with 45 homers (tied with Kyle Schwarber for the MLB lead) and 39 steals in 158 games.

Prior to the 24-year-old’s entry, only six players enjoyed 40-40 seasons: Jose Canseco (1988), Barry Bonds (1996), Alex Rodriguez (1998), Alfonso Soriano (2006), Ronald Acuña Jr. (2023) and Shohei Ohtani (2024). Ohtani is the only one of these players to accumulate 50 of each, while Acuña recorded the most stolen bases (73) among the club’s members. Canseco, Acuña and Ohtani each won MVP in their 40-40 seasons (50-50 in Ohtani’s case).

Yet PCA may be having the most impressive all-around season out of these members. He has the highest fWAR of any player in the club at an incredible 10.6, while chipping in 23.7 Defensive Runs Above Average. Reaching the 40-40 mark alongside being arguably the best defensive player in baseball is no small feat.

To make things even more remarkable, Crow-Armstrong is putting up one of the greatest seasons ever despite getting off to a very slow start at the plate. In his first 50 games, he hit just .225/.302/.357 with five home runs and an 85 wRC+. But from May 21 to September 23, PCA slashed .303/.401/.669 with 40 home runs, 27 stolen bases, a 187 wRC+ and 9.4 fWAR. It’s worth wondering just how much higher his season totals would be if he didn’t start off so sluggishly.

With this latest feat, Crow-Armstrong is now the overwhelming favorite to capture the 2026 NL MVP Award. The aforementioned Shohei Ohtani had won the previous two awards and appeared on track for a third straight with a remarkable two-way first half, but PCA’s surge and pitching injuries to Ohtani have completely flipped the MVP race on its head.

The Cubs have already punched their ticket to the MLB postseason as a Wild Card, and they will be playing in the NL Wild Card Series next week. If PCA can continue his Hall of Fame-caliber play to lead the Cubs on a deep playoff run, perhaps he could cap off one of the greatest all-around seasons of the 21st century with a World Series ring.