Pete Crow-Armstrong discusses playing in the majors, Cubs' struggles and Shota Imanaga's excellence (Exclusive)

After several intriguing offseason moves, the Chicago Cubs were a chic pick to win the National League Central heading into this season.

Most notably, the Cubs poached venerable manager Craig Counsell from the rival Milwaukee Brewers, who were seemingly taking a step backward after winning two of the past three divisional crowns.

Hoping to build on a group that had won nine more games than in its previous campaign, the Cubs re-signed former MVP Cody Bellinger and added infielder Michael Busch, reliever Héctor Neris and Japanese import Shota Imanaga, who joined a rotation that already included Justin Steele, a top five NL Cy Young Award finisher in 2023.

Throw in well-rounded talent in Ian Happ, Nico Hoerner and Dansby Swanson, and promising youngsters such as top prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong and starter Javier Assad, and it seemed Counsell would work his magic and turn this club into a postseason participant in short order.

Yet, as the All-Star Break approaches, the Cubs needed to win five of six just to temporarily wiggle out of the Central basement and will head into the official second half under .500.

There have been a few tough injuries, but the Cubs simply have underachieved for 90-plus games. Will they snap out of it before it’s too late? Will they have to sell in a few weeks, or will they be that club that sneaks into the playoffs and then makes every opponent nervous?

Pete Crow-Armstrong Interview (Exclusive)

The 22-year-old Crow-Armstrong, who was supposed to be in the thick of the NL Rookie of the Year race but has struggled to hit .200, agreed recently to a Q&A to discuss his struggles, the team’s struggles and the refreshing emergence of Imanaga.

There were a lot of expectations for this club. What do you think has gone wrong?

I don't know. I don't think there's a whole lot going wrong with this team. I think it's the obvious things that you all can see, too. The days that we get good outings from our starters and our bullpen, we don't pick it up on the offensive side of things. As an offense, we definitely want to produce more. I think what we've seen recently is a little glimpse into what we can be. But I think a glimpse is exactly what it is. Everybody that comes here does the work every day, the necessary work to win ballgames. I don't know if I have the best answer as to why that hasn't happened. But I don't think we're all that far off.

I don't think there's that much that's actually been wrong. It's just that we've missed opportunities. But it’s important not to (miss) right now because we got guys like (Ian) Happ and whomever -- but Happer specifically is starting to go off -- allowing guys like me to come back into the lineup and try feed off what he's doing. And guys like Mastro (Miles Mastrobuoni) coming into the ballgames and locking third base down and doing it with the bat as well. So, I think that's huge for us. Once that starts happening, I think infectious baseball comes after that.

This club has an interesting mix in the outfield with a group of talented veterans and young players jockeying for time. What have you seen out of that group since you’ve been up?

I’ve seen adaptability. I've seen a lot of a lot of those guys be able to go out and play right field, if need be. They’ll DH, if need be. I think that’s what we see from this club as a whole. That’s big from the bullpen standpoint, too. Trying out guys in different types of roles and innings and situations. Everybody here is willing to do that. And I think that's going to contribute to what we're talking about in this second half: Being better as a team.

You played in 13 big-league games last September at age 21. This year, you’ve been in the majors, for the most part, since late April. What has this season and the transition to the majors been like for you?

It was laid out pretty clearly for me, when I first came up, about what was actually needed. And that was a defensive-first kind of thing. My own ego, my own will and my competitiveness have made it difficult to really buy into that for myself sometimes. Just because the numbers aren't there offensively. But it’s good to be able to take a step back, zoom out a little bit and look at what I am doing well. Because the biggest learning curve is always going to be the offensive thing. If I were to take a guess, I think that probably will stay true my whole career.

But I'm a good hitter and I think it's only a matter of time before I really start to figure things out better than I have. I think it's clear that the offensive thing is what is bringing up the rear for me, but that's OK with me. I think if I can feel like I'm impacting things in the field and on the bases, then the stick will come.

Is there anything specific you're focusing on offensively? Is it pitch recognition or being more patient at this level?

I recognize the ball out of hand I think relatively well. I would have to say it's got to do with what I swing at and how I approach each at bat. Really zeroing in on one part of the zone, creating a zone where I know where the outer half is for me, and the inner half is for me and my floor and my ceiling. But also, just rolling with the punches. I've hit the high pitch better than anticipated and I've hit the down pitch not nearly as well as I should have or not nearly as well as my track record would show. So, it's about adapting.

If I'm going to handle the high pitch well, then I'm seeing a lot of chase (pitches), because big-league guys can execute those backfoot sliders. It takes me striking out looking on a down-and-in slider to kind of understand where that bottom is. So, I’m just playing to what my current strengths are. And I think that the current strength means whatever I'm doing well at the time.

You were the 19th pick overall in the 2020 draft and a consensus top 20 prospect in the minors heading into this year for an organization with a rabid fan base. That’s a lot of pressure, especially when you start slowly offensively. How have you dealt with that?

I would say the extra pressure comes from myself. I don't tend to feel weighted by external pressures. If anything, everybody here has kind of been de-stressors for me. I don't think anybody here has added any sort of pressure. It's gotten to a point now where it's a little bit more my style of relationships and coaching. It’s less, ‘Let's let him get his feet wet’ and more of, ‘Let's help this dude out and get on him when we need to and lay off when we need to.’ I’ve been able to come here every day peacefully, with a lot of support, and that has been huge. I think I'm a little more impatient than anybody else for me to start playing well. So, the external stresses are about how you deal with it, but the pressure I put on me is always gonna be the biggest.

Has this year been frustrating for you?

Yeah, absolutely.

But you’re 22 and you knew what the learning curve was like after your taste of it in 2023.

Yeah. And I know this game is hard. I think it's important to understand that you're human, but I think it's also important to still keep that chip on your shoulder or whatever you want to call it. And those expectations for yourself, I think it's important to continue to keep those.

Last question: The Cubs have just one 2024 All Star, Japanese lefty Shota Imanaga. What has it been like to stand in the field behind him and watch him pitch?

Fun. I don't tend to get very many baseballs when Shota or Javy (Assad) is on the mound. It's cool watching Shota’s sequencing and watching him attack hitters so confidently. For a guy coming from overseas like that -- and it's his first year in a new country -- I think all that should say a lot about how he's been able to perform considering his circumstances. He comes in here as his full-fledge self; he’s super authentic and genuine and we love going out and playing defense for Shota. And we definitely want to back him up with the bats.