Rahimi, Harris & Grote Show - Examining the work that Pete Crow-Armstrong is doing on his swing

Episode Date: February 18, 2026

Leila Rahimi and Marshall Harris discussed the work that Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong is doing on his swing.

Rahimi Harris and Grody I don't want to break time I want to yell at a portion Can we handle more Anthony Herron Midday's 10 to 2 on 104 3 the score He's going to try to

throw something that's going to be right on the edge of the strike zone if he can You got two guys with a lot of adrenaline rushing through them right now though There's the pitch Line drive based it into right field It's going to drive in one It's going to drive in two

Cubs lead three to one. Pete Pro Armstrong delivers. Advancing the third is he in half. Horner and Tucker both scored. Cubs lead three to one. We're probably not making enough of the fact that you can hear Cubs baseball in FM quality

on Friday on this station. And it's an all-Chicago matchup, by the way. It is a crosstown matchup. Fox fixing B 1-0 Oh Marshall's out here making predictions Baseball is back That's right

That's Pat Hughes And Ron Coomber And yes, on 104 3 the score We will have spring training baseball Starting for you on Friday Walk outside, enjoy this weather And then know that the vibe will continue this week on the score

It's a good feeling, isn't it? It's a great feeling. I will be listening. All I have to say is, I caramba. And now you can hear that in FM quality like we do? I can't wait.

This is Rahimi Harris and Grotty on 1043, the score. And I know Marshall, you and Russ Dorsey talked about the top storylines for the Cubs leading into this season. And I know that's something you and I will get into. It's something that everybody should do for themselves, actually. Like, what are you interested in? Yes, give yourself some homework. What are questions you have about the Cubs and the White Sox?

And then try to see what you can answer while watching spring training. For me, one of the biggest ones was how will Pete Crow Armstrong adjust to the league adjusting to him. Well, lo and behold, we have some answers, thanks in part to our friends at the Athletics. Ahana Sharma talked about it and wrote a story that I recommend you read. And yes, indeed, Pete Crowe Armstrong worked with hitting coach John Maley on a swing change, which I think is an excellent way to try to get back to what we saw him do in

the first half. I think the first thing you got to understand is as a hitter. you need to be able to identify what's a strike and what's not a strike. That helps. Once you do that, then you need to understand that just because a pitch is technically a strike doesn't mean it's a pitch that you should give up your bat for. There's a time in place to take a pitch that is a strike. And I'm interested in what John Maley said specifically when it comes to how they're working

with Pete Crowe Armstrong to get him to be in the best position to attack the strike zone. And I'm glad you brought up plate discipline and pitch selection in this because I do think that that's part of it. So then take it a step even further into reassessing your entire mental process. And that's what Maley did. This is reported by Sahada of Sharma. The quote is from P. Crow Armstrong. We just noticed that when the setup was out of whack, I wasn't really getting in the box the same way. That's when the swing went to crap and mechanical stuff started playing a bigger role in the lack of success.

us. That makes sense. And what his assisting hitting coach made a lot of sense. And this is somebody he's worked with since in the minor leagues because he was down there with him when he was in the minor leagues. This quote really spoke to me. Going further to what you just said that Pete Kerr-Armstrong

said, Maley's saying, quote, he got a little stretched out. He was accelerating in his stride covering too much ground, which kind of made him a little long and he was miss hitting balls. So he went back to staying short like he was early in the year, small tap, small separation, and really rotating in place as opposed to jumping and crashing forward, kept his head stiller and allowed him to get more balls consistently.

So it's not necessarily that he had this horrible strikeout rate. It's just the balls that he was putting in play weren't doing anything. Well, and he did have a horrible strikeout rate. You know, that is part of it. He had a chase rate that was the third highest in baseball. His on-base percentage was the 11th lowest. And you're right. That doesn't always mean, strikeout, but it just meant unproductive at bats. Like, no matter how you slice it, that's what it looked like. And that explains why the timing mechanism was so off. Combine your height, combine your body type with what he's talking about, that, that length

that he discussed. And then when you put that together, that's why you look slow. It's why you look behind. It's why a ball in the dirt looks like it was beneath the ground and you're still swinging at it. Instead of it being a swing, it looks like a golf swing. Everything gets exaggerated because the movement is unnecessarily exaggerated. A lot of people were coming at my neck last season when I was like, yes, he is having an excellent first season.

But I do question his Vladimir Guerrero style approach to I can hit anything out because he was hitting balls that were at his neck out of the ballpark or down at his toes for doubles. If you're doing that, it's all well and good until it's not. the goal is to make the strike zones tighter to make your ability to delineate balls from strikes and what you know you can do with a pitch versus what you can't do with a pitch. And that's the hope is that if he goes back to the production of the first half of the season,

it doesn't even necessarily have to look like what it looked like in the first half of the last season. It's also just who's opposing you. The opposing pitcher is going to throw a different mix of pitches at you now that they know how to beat you. And the things that you can, see from a mile away because they didn't quite know how to pitch mix to you are not going to be the same thing anymore. The league made an adjustment to you. How are you making an adjustment to the

league? And the league won in those last two months of the season. His weighted runs created plus number was only a 45. That is very bad. That is that is atrocious and underperforming given his talent level. And given what he did in the first half of the season. So Russ and I talked about this, here's what we decided. If he gives you a full season, like he gave you a full season, he was out there playing baseball, if he gives you a full season, but it's at around 70% of what he gave you in the first half, but he does it for the whole season. I sign up for that tomorrow.

Well, yeah, because that would be consistency, which in baseball is the Golden Goose. You would know what you were getting. The hard part for him is going to be knowing that you can hit the, the ball at your toes, knowing that you can hit the ball at your nose, but knowing that if you look for those two, you're going to miss everything else that comes to you. That's a good pitch to hit. Dang, I was waiting for that rhyme with the toes and nose. That's all I had. I can't finish it. I thought you can hit me with like a those. But if you swing for those, you'll get a rose. That's all you'll get. I don't knows. But you feel me. I do feel you. Except for that last part.

It's bad grammar. It made Marshall Cringe. No, no, you're fine. You're fine. Oh, this is good from our Twitch chat, the June 1321. Doesn't mean you swing it. Anything goes. Oh, that's a bar. It was right there. Go team.

See, we need everybody in this. But no, for PCA, his success is such a pivotal deciding factor in how good this team can be. It might be he goes, they go. He goes, they go. It really might be that. I'm not saying he bats lead off. Let's not go crazy here. Don't want that.

But I'm saying it might be as, because of what you know out of Alex Bregman, because of what you know out of Sia Suzuki, because of how important that protection in the lineup is to a guy like Saya, it might be that crucial as to, because are you getting the same offense out of your catcher position? This is of no offense to Carson Kelly and Miguel Amaya, just understanding the world. Where would you put him in the lineup, ideally? Because we talked about the leadoff spot. We think that should be Michael Bush, Nico Horner, variation of that.

probably platoon-based. If it's a left-hander, maybe you put Bush a little further down, fifth or sixth in the lineup. I like that. But where does Nico Horner go in a world where Kyle Tucker doesn't exist? Does Alex Breggman hit second?

Do you put Peacrow Armstrong in the two-hole? I think Breggman hits second. So then who's hitting third? See how this works? No, but here's my real scare to myself. Like, I don't know if I want to go down this path. So if it's Bush, Bregman, Nico. I like Nico hitting with a duck on the pond.

So either first or third. Either he's starting you off or he's hitting third. No more than third. But then you know who I'm hitting cleanup. It's Michael Bush. No, if I have Bush leading off and then. Oh, I see what you're saying. Then it's Peaker Armstrong in that scenario. Is it not? And I don't necessarily know that that's the best use of my time and space here. I'm trying to think of other candidates in a balanced line. In theory, it's SEA.

That's what I thought. That's my mind to say. So back to back righties? I'm okay with it. I don't need it to be the Terry Francona. Switch right left, right, left, right, left. I'll have to think on that. Switch right, right, left, right left really is ideal.

But let's, I mean, let's be honest with ourselves. What's ideal is switch one through nine. That's what's ideal. Stop, stop, stop it with, we've got a bridge too far. The Max Crosby Bears talk and now all switch hitting lineup. We're going to get struck by some sort of weird. lightning just for bringing the stuff up. They just need to, you know, check

in on Louis-San healthy if he's available. Okay, 217 asked a question that I think we should answer. What's more likely for what's more likely for Peter Armstrong? I think that was a reference to the Ian Hap joke, he calls him Peter. An MVP year or being sent down

to work on stuff. Whoa. Okay. Don't, oh, the other one. Those are extremes. I think that that is a terrifying sports hypothetical. Sent down. I don't like that. I don't think he gets sent down, and I don't think he's getting MVP, especially in the National League. We're like Shohei Otani. No, no, no, no.

But let's honor 217's question. It's just, what's more likely? I think what's more likely, unless Shohei Otani gets hurt, it's probably being sent down to the work on stuff. But I don't see that happening. I don't see it happening. I'm just, I'm going off the what's more likely. Oh, here's another rhyme from 708. It's being in the nose.

And also 574 with a very important question. Pat Hughes, when'd you get in? Who's asking Pat when he got in? Who's doing it? That is an annual spring training tale. I'm sure we will hear. I'm hoping this weekend, for sure. Who's our soldiers?

Who's asking Pat when he got in? When'd you get in? That's how I know how to say it. Yeah. I'm trying to phrase it in my head. There's no other way. Yeah. When'd you get in?

we need you out there we need you on that wall yeah he's never I agree 773 peak where Armstrong isn't getting sent down but I don't know we've been very hypothetical all day today I've been hypothetical my whole life

in the Pete and he got to get on baseball stop fleeing the garbage we reward that bad impression of Lois way too often wait Pete and I

need you to get on baseball and stop playing the garbage Like that In the spirit of shooter shoot We reward the shooter shooting More than we reward the actual shot That was the day we were out at Gallagher Way And we took a call

And the guy The caller went into character mode He did the little trickery With the call screener on that day Robbie Triano And went into a character And that character was Lois Griffin Peter,

Stop swinging a garbage And he got to get on baseball Stop swinging the garbage And we didn't understand it at the time So you had to like play it back here It a couple of times Like oh It's credit to Robbie Triano

Because when he listened back to it He was like, wait a minute Robbie was like I'm sorry guys We didn't understand How would you know Rob? Like how would you know

None of us understood what that was at first As a team we figured it out Also one of our textors did say I think it's a reference to Pita stuff swinging a garbage. It is. It is. It is.

How did this become such a part of our lives? Pete and I need you get on baseball and stop swinging the garbage. When did you get in? Is this the point where you realize that like every baseball season to an extent is Groundhog Day? But you love it? I definitely love it. But you know. You know deep down.

I understand. Who's your next Gage Tater Workman, Marshall Harris? And a 160. Oh, wow. You really had to bring in Tate. to this, huh? Because there will be one. We'll all fall in love with that person.

Oh, Scott Kingery's my guy for the Cubs. But he's got too much experience. Oh, you want to roll. They didn't have a Rule 5 guy this year. They don't. But the socks do. Sox keep a Rule 5 guy or two. They have two, I think.

Yeah, I'm saying, if you're the socks, you keep Roll 5 guys because roll the dice. Gage ended up going to the White Sox. Yeah, remember he wanted to get revenge on the Cubs. He said it in an interview without saying the word revenge, but that was the sentiment. And then they cut him. Sorry, Tater. Okay, this isn't a bad line about a 6-3-0.

How you got to cut it? They say Bush, Nico Bregman, Suzuki, Biosteros, have PCA, Dansby, Kelly, slash Amaya. Catchers definitely nine. Would you bat PCA behind? Happen Bios? Not necessarily.

You know what? I might put Biosteros in the three-hole. Like in a lineup where you start off with Nico up top Yeah if Nico's batting leadoff And then you put Bush second For the record You know I want Byesteros to have to be that slugger That he profiles to be

But he hasn't shown anything yet Guess who just texted in Mike the Chicago Sports Clown Mike the Chicago Sports Clown What's up, baby? Look forward to the preseason baseball starting Friday Good luck this year go Cubs, Mike, aka clown guy. Mike, did you get to go to games at Soldier Field this year?

Did you get to be shirtless in any of the really cool games? We have a lot of questions for you, Mike. I just need you to know that because, you know, Mike is shirtless at Bears games. So like, how is your Bears season? You just, you just abandoned us for Bears and you come back for Cubs. Maybe we deserve it, but still. I like to keep my shirt on. Mike is a, Mike is out there. It's, man, Mike's back. I'm loving this. I that makes me happy. Also another text or asked about Mike. We're all on the same page, guys.

I don't know what our team's doing, but at least we're a team. In the meantime, uh, there is a, there was a comp that was made by people who should know better in basketball. Is that a fair way to put it? Yes. So then it was, uh, held accountable next.