Buckle up, Cubs fans.
Tuesday night offered a glimpse into how the Chicago Cubs have set themselves up for a stellar foundation up the middle for years to come.
Shortstop Dansby Swanson and second baseman Nico Hoerner are already among MLB leaders in Defensive Runs Saved, but the club’s top prospect, Pete Crow-Armstrong, stole the spotlight (and a couple of extra bases) during his first Major League start.
Crow-Armstrong — baseball 12th-ranked prospect, per MLB.com — proved his scouting report to be true. MLB said the 21-year-old is one of “the game’s best defensive prospects,” grading him with a stellar 80 fielding scouting grade score.
Scouts gave “top-of-the-scale grades” to his center field skills, noting the 19th overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft has “tremendous range from gap to gap,” possesses a “combination of plus speed and precision reads and routes” and completes the package with “solid arm strength.”
But if reading scouting reports are too laborious, see for yourself. PCA wasted no time getting onto the highlight reel on Tuesday, robbing the Rockies Nolan Jones of extra bases in the bottom of the first: