The Chicago Cubs were desperate for a win. They were coming off a stretch of four losses in five games. A glimmer of hope came in the form of young star Pete Crow-Armstrong. After a dismal month, he was finally having his best day. In the match, he got three hits and scored both of his team’s runs. This created the possibility of a dramatic last-inning comeback. But fate has other plans.

When the Cubs were trailing the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-3, Crow-Armstrong led off the bottom of the ninth with a single. He was on the 1st base and had a chance of tying the run. On the very first pitch, he ran for second base. He easily beat the catcher’s throw, but his raw energy betrayed him. Unfortunately, he overslid the bag and was tagged out. The rally was dead. And the night ended with the Cubs’ loss.

After the game, Pete Crow-Armstrong had put forth this issue. He was feeling the pressure. “So when stuff starts to pile up like that, it s—–,” he said. “But it’s also baseball and I still have however many weeks left in the season and it’s still a lot of time to begin to produce again. But I mean it’s just wanting to go out there every day and treat every day like you have a chance to do something new.” That single mistake was just the boiling point of a disappointing month.

It’s a slide so great it puts his nine-figure future at risk. Before this game, the 23-year-old was in a horrible  3-for-37 stretch. His August average was a shocking .073. He had zero home runs, zero walks, and 15 strikeouts over the month. PCA is playing this season under a one-year, $771,000 contract. Back in April and May, when he was putting up MVP-caliber numbers, reports surfaced that the Cubs were exploring a contract extension that could run through 2030.

That conversation looks different now. This collapse has cast serious doubt on his chances of landing a $100 million-plus deal. The league has figured him out and is exploiting his overly aggressive play style. It’s also derailed what once looked like an MVP-caliber campaign—he was right in the mix with Shohei Ohtani, Kyle Schwarber, Pete Alonso, and other big names before the All-Star break.

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The sudden drop-off feels jarring. But for those who have followed his career closely, it’s not entirely surprising to see him stumble at the highest level. The silver lining? Each time he’s been knocked down, he’s found a way to claw back.

Is history repeating itself for Pete Crow-Armstrong?

When Pete Crow-Armstrong first reached the majors in September 2023, he went hitless in his first 14 at-bats—a rough introduction to big-league pitching. His 2024 rookie season wasn’t much easier. He grinded through 123 games, hitting just .237 with a below-average .670 OPS. Still, his track record shows a pattern: growth might come slowly, but it does come.

The young outfielder hasn’t shied away from his struggles. “I just suck at hitting baseballs sometimes right now,” he admitted bluntly. “It doesn’t feel OK when I’m on the field and want to help my team win.” Manager Craig Counsell has stepped into a mentorship role, reminding both PCA and the team to zoom out. “This is baseball happening, and you’ve got to be tough enough to roll with that… for us to focus on results is harmful.”

Teammate Ian Happ echoed the frustration that runs through the clubhouse. “I think this group knows we can play better baseball than we have the past couple of weeks,” Happ said. “There’s nothing we can do but come out tomorrow and do it again.” For PCA, the pressure is real—he’s seen as one of the core pieces of the Cubs’ offensive future, and the weight of expectation hangs heavy.

The Cubs’ staff doesn’t see a mechanical flaw in his swing. Hitting coach Dustin Kelly believes the battle is mental. The data shows PCA is simply letting hittable pitches go by. The problem, though, isn’t his alone. Happ entered the night with just one hit in his last 16 at-bats, while Kyle Tucker was mired in a 0-for-14 slump. With the Cubs going 3-7 over their last 10 games, the collective struggles have left them sliding further behind the division-leading Milwaukee Brewers—making every missed opportunity feel that much more costly.