PITTSBURGH — Pete Crow-Armstrong oozes confidence. The Chicago Cubs’ All-Star center fielder operates at a high speed that pressures the opponent, and plays with an edge that either entertains or annoys, depending on which team you’re rooting for in that moment.At 24, Crow-Armstrong is performing at a level where he could take a National League MVP award away from Shohei Ohtani, even if the Los Angeles Dodgers’ two-way superstar returns as a starting pitcher later this season. As the sport’s best defender and a dynamic offensive force — FanGraphs already rates him as a 7-WAR player — Crow-Armstrong has been that impactful.With one week remaining until the Aug. 3 trade deadline, Cubs executives Jed Hoyer and Carter Hawkins will have to determine how sacred this season really is, how much prospect capital and future value to give up to support a resourceful team that believes it can beat anyone.“If we go get pieces, that’s only going to help us,” Crow-Armstrong said. “The way that we’re playing, and what we’re capable of in this current clubhouse, there’s a lot of big things that we can achieve with this group.“Whatever the front office does, I assume it will probably just help our cause. I’m excited to welcome anybody that finds themselves in a Cub uniform. But for now, and until the deadline, I love what we got. And I love what we’re doing.”Big decisions loom for Jed Hoyer. MLB’s trade deadline is Aug. 3. (Michael Reaves / Getty Images)The odds are overwhelmingly against the Cubs overtaking the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central race. The likelihood of not receiving a first-round bye and getting placed in the wild-card round is a factor that Hoyer has acknowledged as part of the club’s trade-deadline deliberations. But the rest of the season won’t be played on a computer.Besides the PCA-for-MVP campaign — 23 home runs, 26 stolen bases, a .933 OPS and off-the-charts defensive metrics — the Cubs have a lot of things going for them. The rest of the position players, most notably third baseman Alex Bregman, haven’t played up to or beyond expectations, meaning some of those established hitters are probably due for a bounce. Seiya Suzuki has already demonstrated his ability to carry the offense and produce against elite pitching in the playoffs.Matthew Boyd and Shota Imanaga are pitching deeper into games, solidifying the front of the rotation and taking pressure off the bullpen. An avalanche of pitching injuries created opportunities for different relievers to step forward and earn trust. Adding in both areas would limit exposure and allow the Cubs to game plan accordingly.“The players that we have in this clubhouse right now,” Boyd said, “we believe are good enough to win the World Series. It doesn’t really matter what everybody else says. We’re good enough to win the division. We plan to. If the front office adds, it’ll be welcome because that means we’re going to get better.”After undergoing a surgical procedure on his left knee in May, Boyd has rounded into form, looking more like last year’s All-Star selection and Game 1 playoff starter. The Cubs are 6-0 in Boyd’s six starts since coming off the injured list in late June, and the club is hopeful that the time off will help keep his left arm fresher.Imanaga is also trending in the right direction, posting a 1.19 ERA in July while continuing to lead the team in starts (21) and innings pitched (121). If the Cubs can keep Imanaga on track and help him replicate his 2024 All-Star performance, then they would have another viable playoff starter.“The players that we have in this clubhouse right now,” Matthew Boyd said, “we believe are good enough to win the World Series.” (Matt Dirksen / Chicago Cubs / Getty Images)After Sunday’s 8-7 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park, the Cubs are facing a seven-game deficit in the division while holding the NL’s top wild-card position. Beginning Aug. 31, they are scheduled to play the Brewers seven times in 10 days. One of the storylines at this trade deadline will be which team makes the bigger splash.“That would be welcomed in any capacity,” Boyd said, “but we believe that the guys in this clubhouse are good enough to do what we want to do now. Because if nothing did happen, we believe that the jerseys that are in here, and the jerseys that will be added from the injured list, are good enough to go where we want to go. Good enough to win this division. Good enough to go win a World Series. People are going to say what they want about that, but we do believe it.”In going over that lengthy injured list, Cubs manager Craig Counsell provided the following updates that may add another measure of optimism and shape the post-deadline outlook:• Daniel Palencia, the season-opening closer who is sidelined with right elbow inflammation, remains on schedule to begin a minor-league rehab assignment in early August. Working around Palencia’s absences, the Cubs have used 11 other pitchers for saves.• Hunter Harvey, the hard-throwing reliever the Cubs guaranteed $6 million despite his extensive injury history, is now on a timeline similar to Palencia’s progression. After shutting Harvey down with right triceps inflammation in April and watching his rehab process stall, the Cubs had been concerned that his season might be over.• Shelby Miller, another talented reliever who signed with the Cubs while recovering from Tommy John surgery, is throwing live batting practice. Miller’s ramp-up will be longer, but the club is optimistic that he could be an X-factor later this season.But the idea of getting back to full strength over a 162-game schedule is an illusion. Something else always happens, as Hoyer’s front office knows full well after methodically constructing this roster over multiple years, and then absorbing a cascade of pitching injuries that would have sunk a lesser organization.Team-building, though, can’t only be science based on projection systems and playoff probabilities. There’s an art to finding the right personalities and adding certain elements to enhance the group. At the trade deadline, the Cubs should seize that opportunity.“I love this team,” Crow-Armstrong said. “At the end of the first half, beginning of the second half, we kind of talked about how much of a grind it’s been. I love who’s in this clubhouse just because I think every single person in here has shown that they’re up for the challenge.”