PHILADELPHIA — Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong sounds uncertain about potentially participating in next year’s Home Run Derby at Wrigley Field.
More Top Picks Stove
Wrigley will host its first All-Star Game since 1990 when the Midsummer Classic comes to the North Side in 2027. Last time, Cubs legend and Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg won the event at the Friendly Confines.
As tempting as it would be to do it in front of his home crowd, Crow-Armstrong admitted Monday before the Home Run Derby at Citizens Bank Park that he isn’t sure if he’s the right type of hitter for the event.
“I won’t probably do it as of right now, I mean, maybe I will, just being at home and everything, but that is a tiring couple hours and I don’t quite know if my swing is built for that,” Crow-Armstrong said. “If (the Nationals’) James Wood’s talking about fatigue and all that stuff then I should probably think long and hard about whether or not to do it.”
Twenty-four hours later, while standing at his locker in the Phillies’ home clubhouse before the All-Star Game, Crow-Armstrong conceded he had revisited his indecisiveness about doing the derby at Wrigley following his initial comments.
“I was just like, man, I feel like it’s more something that I owe to Cubs fans and all that, if they want to see me in there,” Crow-Armstrong said.
At the same time, Crow-Armstrong said teammate Seiya Suzuki, who is a free agent after this season, would be a better choice for next year’s Home Run Derby, believing he would be the more entertaining hitter.
Crow-Armstrong obviously doesn’t need to make those decisions now, a year away from the Wrigley’s All-Star festivities and with more baseball ahead of him to earn that honor for a third consecutive year.
Watching slugger Junior Caminero, who was part of Monday’s derby, take batting practice whenever the Cubs play the Tampa Bay Rays had Crow-Armstrong thinking, “I don’t know if I can hang with that guy.”
But could someone sway him to participate?
“I mean, we’ll see,” Crow-Armstrong said. “There’s a lot of people that could probably sway me to do it. I’m not totally closed off to the idea. It’s just an intimidating thought, man. It really is.”
This year’s new derby format is likely to suit Crow-Armstrong, too. Instead of having to swing against a timer, each hitter had 20 swings each round — plus the bonus ball that gave them another swing — no matter how many went yard.
“If I know I’ve got 20 pitches to work with, I’m sure it would help me out a lot,” he noted.
Former teammate Cody Bellinger, who was part of the derby field in 2017, envisions Crow-Armstrong holding his own in the event. Crow-Armstrong rarely takes on-field batting practice during the season, preferring to get in his pregame work in the batting cage, which Bellinger said could make the derby a little more challenging for him, but added, “He’s so competitive and he’s got really good power, I think he’d fare well and it’s such a cool experience, especially at home — he should do it.”
Willson Contreras never had a chance to play with Crow-Armstrong in Chicago. He signed with the St. Louis Cardinals during free agency the offseason before Crow-Armstrong debuted with the Cubs. Contreras, who embraced a villainous role in Monday’s derby, thinks Crow-Armstrong would do well if he participated in 2027.
“He doesn’t have any sneaky power, he has power and he shows that,” Contreras said. “I mean, it’s really impressive from last year to this year, the adjustments he’s made, and it’s fun to watch him play.”
A packed Citizens Bank Park backed their two Phillies, Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper, in Monday’s Home Run Derby, even booing the other entrants during introductions and at key points during the rounds against the duo. The crowd was electric whenever Schwarber and Harper hit, especially as Schwarber advanced to the final before losing to the Cardinals’ Jordan Walker on the last swing. Only three host team players have won the derby: Harper (2018, Nationals), Todd Frazier (2015, Reds) and Sandberg.
Asked how he would persuade Crow-Armstrong to do the Home Run Derby at Wrigley, Schwarber kept it simple.
“You might not ever have the opportunity to ever do it again and especially in front of your hometown fans, right?” Schwarber said. “That’s a big reason that (Harper and I) wanted to do it because you’re here at the Bank and you know your fan base is going to show out for this and you want to feel like you’re representing them as well.”
Harper isn’t buying Crow-Armstrong’s uncertainty about participating.
“He’s going to do it, there’s no doubt about it,” Harper told the Tribune on Tuesday. “He doesn’t need to be swayed. He doesn’t need to be anything. He’s going to do it. If he has the opportunity to be in the All-Star Game, there’s no chance he’s going to let that pass up. That’s his ballpark. He knows it. So, no, I think he’s going to do it no matter what.”
More Top Picks Best 72 Channel Av Receivers
When Harper’s comments were conveyed, Crow-Armstrong grinned.
Regardless of how his participation in the ’27 Home Run Derby ultimately plays out, Crow-Armstrong is excited to see the All-Star Game come back to Wrigley.
“I think Wrigleyville might be a bit of a chaotic scene, but, honestly, at the same time, probably the perfect place to do it,” Crow-Armstrong said. “Wrigleyville is fun Monday through Sunday so I’m interested to see how packed it is, how hard it ends up being trying to get around. … Wrigley’s a beautiful ballpark, and I’m glad it’ll be on display for everybody to see.”
“I just hope the wind is blowing out.”