The Rundown: PCA’s Historic Season, Cubs Hope to Sweep Sox, Dodgers’ Partner Under Federal Investigation

Michael CanterAugust 19, 2026

“I’m a shooting star leaping through the sky like a tiger, defying the laws of gravity.” – Don’t Stop Me Now by Queen

We had a discussion a while back about the best leadoff batters in team history, and my argument was simple: Which player from any Cubs team since the franchise’s inception would you choose to hit at the top of the order instead of Pete Crow-Armstrong? There is nobody, and I’ll die on that hill. I don’t think it’s a very close race, either.

PCA and Shohei Ohtani, both top-of-the-order hitters, are the co-favorites to win this year’s National League MVP Award. That is a rare occurrence for a leadoff hitter in either league, and the list is very prestigious.

1950 Phil Rizzuto (Yankees) – Batted .324/418/.857 with 200 hits.
1962 Maury Wills (Dodgers) – Finished the season with 208 hits, 130 runs, and 104 stolen bases.
1965 Zoilo Versalles (Twins) – He tallied 7.2 WAR and received 98% of the first-place votes. His high WAR was mostly defense-based, but he did lead the AL in runs scored (126).

1973 Pete Rose (Reds) – His 8.3 WAR is considered elite, and he batted a league-high .338 with 230 hits in 680 at-bats. Tom Seaver was a more valuable player that year, however.
1990 Rickey Henderson (A’s) – His 9.9 WAR was slightly behind Roger Clemens (10.4), but Henderson led the league in runs scored (119), stolen bases (65), OBP (.439), and OPS (1.016).
2001 Ichiro Suzuki (Mariners) – He was simultaneously voted AL Rookie of the Year, though Suzuki (7.7) trailed Jason Giambi (9.2), Bret Boone (8.8), and Alex Rodríguez (8.3) in wins against replacement. Still, Suzuki led the league in batting average (.350), hits (242), and stolen bases (56).

2007 Jimmy Rollins (Phillies) – Rollins was not the league’s best player in 2007, but he finished the season with a whopping 787 plate appearances. He also led the league in runs scored (139) and hit 30 home runs, including nine in the first inning. Albert Pujols deserved the award, and David Wright, Chase Utley, Chipper Jones, and Jake Peavy all had better stats than Rollins.
2018 Mookie Betts (Red Sox) – Betts finished with 10.7 WAR and was the game’s best all-around player in ’18. He led the league in batting average (.346) and SLG (.680), with 30 home runs and 32 stolen bases to boot. Betts also received 98% of the first-place votes.
2023 Ronald Acuña Jr. (Braves) – The star center fielder is the only player on this list to receive 100% of the first-place votes. Acuña led the league in runs (149), hits (217), stolen bases (73), OBP (.416), and OPS (1.012). That said, Betts was slightly better that year.

That’s five Hall of Famers, one that should be, and two that could be when their careers are over. One could make a legitimate case for Rollins, too. All I can tell you about Versalles is that as a kid I had about 100 of his Topps baseball cards, and it seemed like one came in every package I purchased.

Here’s what I can tell you about Crow-Armstrong: He is the first Cub whose every at-bat is must-see since Sammy Sosa. The dynamic center fielder led off two games with home runs in the span of 24 hours, with one walk-off home run to boot. That means get to your television before the game starts and don’t stop watching until the game has ended. You might also see a web gem or two and some insane baserunning skills in between.

“That was a magical night in Wrigley Field…”

Pete Crow-Armstrong put on a SHOW last night against the White Sox, going 4-for-5 with a 2B and 2 HR 💪#MLBCentral | @Cubs pic.twitter.com/vVz9N6Gdbn

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) August 18, 2026

There are a handful of five-tool players in baseball, but none as captivating as PCA. I’ve previously compared him to Willie Mays, and that’s accurate when he’s on a heater. I’d probably throw in Henderson, Betts, and the healthy version of Mike Trout.

So let’s play it from a different angle. If you could trade Crow-Armstrong straight up for anybody in this league except Ohtani, and if contracts didn’t matter, who would it be? The answer should be nobody, at least right now. Also, where would you rank Chicago’s MVP candidate in the list above? He’s definitely top six, but there’s a caveat, and it’s that you should only compare their MVP seasons.

Crow-Armstrong is currently batting .282 at a time when .300 hitters are rare. He has 31 home runs, 79 RBI, 31 stolen bases, and he’s scored 90 runs. He is also elite defensively and is on pace to finish with 10.0 WAR. Digging a little further, PCA is hitting .357 with runners in scoring position with eight home runs and 49 RBI. He is hitting .400 with a 1.195 OPS in late-inning, game-on-the-line situations. His batting, fielding, and baserunning run values are all in the 98th percentile or higher.

In short, Crow-Armstrong is playing at a higher level than just about everybody in baseball, and he’s a complete package. He could very possibly have the best season by a leadoff hitter since the BBWAA started awarding each season’s most valuable players in 1931.

Cubs News & Notes

The Cubs will go for the series sweep today after beating the White Sox 4-3 last night.
Alex Bregman was last night’s walk-off hero after an 85-minute rain delay. It was Chicago’s 13th walk-off win at Wrigley Field this season.
Kevin Gausman started yesterday’s game but was pulled due to cramping in his glove hand. Through three turns for the Cubs’ rotation, the 35-year-old Gausman has turned in a 6.19 ERA with 16 strikeouts against four walks in 16 innings.

Gausman is “doing well” and is not expected to miss his next start.
The Cubs announced that Daniel Palencia will rejoin the team in Seattle on Friday. His role is undetermined, but he will be counted on to get outs.
Shortstop Dansby Swanson will remain with the team while recovering from an oblique injury. The Cubs expect him to help in a coaching-type role.

Jefferson Rojas hasn’t slowed down after joining the Mets in the trade for Clay Holmes.
Holmes takes the bump for the Cubs today. He will be opposed by former Cub Sean Newcomb.
Jon Heyman of the NY Post considers PCA the favorite in the NL MVP race.

In the last 10 years, nine players have posted at least one 8-fWAR season. With a little less than six weeks remaining on the schedule, Crow-Armstrong, incredibly, is already there and chasing a possible 40-40 season as he goes.

Ball Four

I suffer from a similar affliction. If you know Gausman, tell him to boost his electrolytes, eat more bananas, some dark chocolate, and take 1,000 mg of L-Arginine per day. That is a bona fide remedy that boosts potassium and magnesium levels, while increasing blood flow to the cramped muscle. I do not expect financial compensation, but I would like to throw the first pitch at one of the playoff games.

Kevin Gausman with a cramp on his non-throwing hand … look at his thumb pic.twitter.com/EkbTHG49Oy

— The Windy City Breakdown (@wcb_pod) August 19, 2026

Central Intelligence

Milwaukee (78-48): The Brewers blasted the Mariners 22-0 last night, scoring all of their runs in the 5th through 8th innings. That matched the modern-era record for the most lopsided shutout. Seattle will host the Cubs for a three-game set starting Friday night.

Chicago (74-53): Sean Burke and Drew Romo of the White Sox believe Ohtani is the clear winner over PCA in the NL MVP race.
St. Louis (65-62): Announcer Chip Caray said calling the debut of Joshua Baez against the Cubs is the highlight of his career. Baez hit three dingers off of Matthew Boyd, which is an historic start, but Caray also announced for the Cubs during the 1998 home run race between Sosa and Mark McGwire, when each chased Roger Maris. I don’t believe Caray for a minute. He is as tied to that era as any peer, player, or coach. You won’t see a highlight of either player during that chase without hearing Caray’s voice. “Big Mac, move over. You’ve got company!”
Pittsburgh (62-66): Braxton Ashcraft nearly threw another Maddux in a 4-1 win over the Tigers. Ashcraft left after eight innings and 80 pitches.

Cincinnati (60-66): The last-place Reds have the worst offense in baseball.

How About That!

Mark Walter’s insurance companies are shuffling billions of dollars in investments involving affiliated businesses amid a federal investigation, regulatory filings released Tuesday show. Walter, who owns the Dodgers, is moving to sell his controlling stake in the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers and is reportedly in talks to offload his shares in the Premier League’s Chelsea FC. In simple terms, Water has been borrowing and lending from/to himself. He got the Dodgers a sweetheart TV deal from a media company his partners co-own, financed by insurance companies those same owners control. Because ownership sits on both sides, as borrower and lender, the setup functions as a closed loop.

A Chicago brokerage firm is also caught up in several of Walter’s shady deals.

Walter also attempted to get the Lakers and Dodgers out of their Spectrum SportsNet contracts to get more money. The Dodgers are not believed to be fielding offers from potential purchasers at this time.

Ohtani continues to match Crow-Armstrong’s energy. His home run last night gave him 30 or more for the sixth consecutive season.

The Dodgers are putting struggling closer Edwin Díaz on the IL again.

Mariners outfielder Julio Rodríguez would probably like to get this moment back.

Padres’ minor league catching coordinator Oswaldo Pirela was detained by ICE in Texas.

The MLB Network will televise a documentary on baseball’s role in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. It’s first airing will be September 10.

Matt Snyder of CBS Sports writes that teams that threw in the towel at the deadline shouldn’t be eligible for the playoffs.

Apropos of Nothing

Since May 1, Javier Assad has a 2.24 ERA in 64.1 innings that span 10 relief appearances, two saves, seven starts, and five games finished. Those are MVP numbers.

Son of Apropos

After 71 years, Columbia House is shutting down for good. The Indiana-based mail-order music giant, which debuted in 1955 and once boasted 16 million members, survived the transition from vinyl to tapes to CDs and even DVDs — but ultimately couldn’t survive the rise of streaming music. The company will close its website and cease operations on September 15.

Extra Innings

Pete’s elite.

Gold Gloves have been given out since 1957.

Only one player has had 30+ Homers, 30+ Steals and a Gold Glove in consecutive seasons. Barry Bonds.

Pete Crow-Armstrong will join him when he gets his Gold Glove this season.

— Christopher Kamka (@ckamka) August 18, 2026

They Said It