Chicago Cubs: Craig Counsell is committing malpractice by letting Pete Crow-Armstrong bat lead-off
The Chicago Cubs fell to the St. Louis Cardinals by the score of 6-5 on Friday night. Now, fans are holding their breaths, hoping that it will not be the start of yet another long losing streak. Entering play on Friday, Chicago had won two games in a row, but those had come on the heels of a ten-game losing streak.
In April and early May, the Cubs were considered one of the more elite teams in Major League Baseball. They had two separate ten-game winning streaks and had an early lead in the National League Central Division.
Outside of those winning streaks, though, Chicago is just 11-27. They have not been able to win series consistently, and multiple everyday players in their lineup have or are currently going through offensive slumps.
Pete Crow-Armstrong is one of them.
Pete Crow-Armstrong should not hit lead-off for the Chicago Cubs
In 2025, Crow-Armstrong got off to an electric start to the season. In the first half of the year, he hit .265/.302/.444 with 25 home runs, 72 RBI, and 27 stolen bases. He was named to the National League All-Star team for the first time as a result.
But in the second half, he struggled mightily at the plate. After the All-Star break, he hit just .216.262/.372 with six home runs, 24 RBI, and eight stolen bases. He ended up with a 30-30 season, but his second half drought at the plate was concerning.
And this year, so far, he has not been anywhere close to matching the production he had in the first half of 2025. Through the first 58 games of 2026, Crow-Armstrong is hitting .226/.314/.362 with six home runs, 24 RBI, and 12 stolen bases.
Cubs manager Craig Counsell recently moved his star center fielder to the lead-off position to help him break out of his prolonged slump. The problem, though, is that Counsell may have already had him where he should be.
As a lead-off hitter this year, Crow-Armstrong is hitting just .192/.333/.269. Clearly, that is not good enough.
Prior to being moved to the lead-off spot, PCA was hitting .321/.387/.357 as the number nine hitter. As far as sample sizes go, he has 33 at bats leading off, and 31 at bats as the nine hitter.
Furthermore, the Gold Glove winner is hitting just .189/.283/.302 when leading off any inning at all. Not only that, he is also hitting .174/.258/.261 when the bases are empty.
However, when there are men on base, PCA is hitting .284/.378/.484. He is also better with runners in scoring position, hitting .296/.371/.463.
And as far as these splits go, PCA has had 115 official at bats with the bases empty, and 95 with runners on base.
It is clear, therefore, that he should not be hitting lead-off, but further down in the order. His best numbers come from the ninth-spot, but he could be moved up in the order too.
One has to wonder, given the sample sizes and their results, why Counsell continues to have PCA bat lead-off when it is clearly obvious that he does not belong in that role.
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The post Chicago Cubs: Craig Counsell is committing malpractice by letting Pete Crow-Armstrong bat lead-off appeared first on ChiCitySports.
Source: https://www.chicitysports.com/chicago-cubs-craig-counsell-pete-crow-armstrong-lead-off/
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