Column: Will we see Pete Crow-Armstrong-Shohei Ohtani encore?

After gaining entrance into the exclusive 40-40 club Thursday, Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong said he felt “free” again.

“Today was the first day in a while I let my instincts kick in and take over,” he said. “I was really proud of that. I feel like I haven’t felt that free on a baseball field in a while. … I just haven’t played the way I wanted to the last few days.”

Imagine how good Crow-Armstrong will be when he learns to relax and play that free all the time?

Or is that inner battle what makes Crow-Armstrong great?

That’s a question only he can answer. And I’m guessing he doesn’t feel the need to answer it after an MVP season that will go down as perhaps the greatest in Cubs history.

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In fact, when I brought it up in June after a game in Milwaukee, asking about his confidence and telling him he looks like he gets down on himself, he replied: “That’s your opinion.”

“I don’t think I get down on myself,” he said. “I think I enjoy and appreciate being realistic with myself, and sometimes that comes off as being hard on myself. But I don’t get down on myself.”

Manager Craig Counsell said Crow-Armstrong needs a release of emotions to fuel him, so whatever works. The Cubs need him to perform in October to get to where they want to go, and if a bat toss or helmet slam helps, go for it.

Crow-Armstrong’s MVP season will be the fifth I’ve covered in almost 40 years of baseball writing in Chicago after Andre Dawson (1987), Frank Thomas (1994), Sammy Sosa (1998) and Kris Bryant (2016). All were sensational players who managed to shut out the noise and put up tremendous numbers.

Only Sosa had to deal with as much nonstop media attention, something Crow-Armstrong has learned to do this summer with varying degrees of success. The Cubs have helped shield him from having to talk daily, a responsibility Sosa gladly handled, win or lose.

Sosa loved the daily attention, even when he was criticized, and rarely shied away from a media scrum. He once asked me in 1998 to help him deal with the onslaught of national writers who covered him during his duel with Mark McGwire for Roger Maris’s all-time single-season home run record. Sosa initially was happy just to talk with a dozen minicams in his face, until I told him the baseball writers he was shunning for the cameras were the actual MVP voters. While McGwire groused his way through the great race, Sosa’s charm offensive made him a favorite with the national media.

Crow-Armstrong is almost the exact opposite. Though he’s media-friendly and articulate, he seemingly prefers being left alone to standing and talking about himself. Getting him to discuss the MVP race is a nonstarter. Even on Thursday after the clincher, he repeated his only goal was winning, adding: “That’s what’s gotten me here and started all these conversations about MVP and all the crap.”

It became apparent in August that he and Shohei Ohtani were the only viable candidates for the National League MVP award. They staged an epic duel Aug. 5 at Wrigley Field, both homering in their first at-bats and finishing with two apiece.

Othani, who has won four MVP awards in five seasons, including one with the Los Angeles Angels, was considered the MVP front-runner most of the season, until the duel in the sun changed things. Shortly thereafter, Ohtani’s return to the mound was postponed, and he hit .130 (7-for-54) from Aug. 18 to Sept. 7 before going on the IL on Sept. 11 with left knee and right biceps injuries.

Crow-Armstrong pulled away, and after his entrance into the 40-40 club, the only real question is whether he’ll be a unanimous MVP. After the Cubs were swept in a doubleheader Friday in Boston, Crow-Armstrong has 45 home runs, 107 RBIs, 41 steals and a .942 OPS. Ohtani had 30 home runs, 81 RBIs, 11 steals and a .901 OPS. Crow-Armstrong had a 10.7 fWAR compared with Ohtani’s 6.8 — 3.9 as a hitter and 2.9 as a pitcher.

Both are unicorns — Ohtani as the only two-way superstar and Crow-Armstrong as arguably the best offensive and defensive player this season.

Winning is the only thing that matters for both. Ohtani sealed his reputation for greatness in October in the World Series and will try to replicate that when the Dodgers begin their bid for a three-peat. With the second-best record in the National League, they’ll  have a bye until the NL Division Series.

Crow-Armstrong’s next big challenge starts Tuesday when the Cubs begin their wild-card series. Their chances of playing at home were damaged by losing both games of Friday’s doubleheader in Boston, making San Diego the likely destination.

Crow-Armstrong hit .300 (3-for-10) against the Padres in the Cubs’ three-game wild-card-series win last year, then batted .118 (2-for-17) with one RBI and no extra-base hits in the five-game loss to the Milwaukee Brewers in the NLDS.

Fox Sports executives are no doubt salivating at the idea of Crow-Armstrong leading the Cubs to a playoff showdown with Ohtani and the Dodgers, which could happen in the NL Championship Series if things go right for the Cubs.

But first things first. The Cubs must regroup in the playoffs and remember what got them there. It wasn’t just Crow-Armstrong but a strong offensive performance up and down the lineup, along with an elite defensive effort.

All eyes are on you, and everything starts anew.