Pete Crow-Armstrong has 36 home runs and leads the NL in OPS after his dominant day at Wrigley Field. Melissa Tamez / Associated PressAug. 29, 2026 Updated 5:30 pm EDTCHICAGO — Pete Crow-Armstrong continued his National League MVP push with the first three-homer game of his career in Saturday’s 17-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds. Crow-Armstrong added a single during a four-hit game and earned a standing ovation from a full house at Wrigley Field after grounding out in his final at-bat in the eighth inning.Crow-Armstrong leads all of baseball with 9.1 WAR (per FanGraphs) heading into Saturday, well ahead of his main competition for NL MVP, Shohei Ohtani (6.9). Ohtani, whose offensive production isn’t far off from Crow-Armstrong’s, has a case built on his ability to both pitch and hit. But with questions surrounding Ohtani’s return to the mound, Crow-Armstrong’s combination of elite offense, defense and base-running skills makes him the front-runner for MVP as September approaches.
PETE CROW-ARMSTRONG HAS HIS FIRST CAREER 3-HOMER GAME! pic.twitter.com/XEfKhUYs9S
— MLB (@MLB) August 29, 2026Along with leading baseball in WAR, Crow-Armstrong is now tied for third with 36 home runs and second behind Yordan Alvarez with 158 wRC+. He’s also fifth in stolen bases with 32. He’s widely considered one of the best defenders in baseball, leading the league in Fielding Run Value and ranking second with 23 Outs Above Average, one behind Bobby Witt Jr.Only four other Cubs have delivered a 9-fWAR season: Rogers Hornsby (11), Sammy Sosa (9.9), Ernie Banks (9.7) and Ron Santo (9.5). With 27 games remaining, Crow-Armstrong is on pace to pass all but Hornsby — and could be within shouting distance of the top spot when all is said and done.This story will be updated.
