Rahimi, Harris & Grote Show - Pete Crow-Armstrong hits best when he's feeling 'sexy'

Episode Date: May 7, 2026

Leila Rahimi and Mark Grote discussed a key to Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong's hitting.

Rahimi Harris and Grotie. We are family here. Midday's 10 to 2 on 104 3 to score. He'd made the all-star team a year ago. Trying to get a hold of him on the pitch. Slinging a drive, left center field, pretty deep back toward the wall. That ball is gone.

That ball is gone. It's a tie game. Can you believe it? Opposite Alley home run. This ball game is back to even. Tired at six. It's almost like a dream. Yeah, you can say that for sure because it was.

Once again, the Cubs come back. Thanks in large part, as we mentioned, 7 to 6 the final. That is Pat Hughes on the Northwestern Medicine Cubs Radio Network, 7 to 6th the final in 10 innings. And a big reason why partially is thanks to 1 PCA. the homer, his fourth of the season. He was absolutely thrilled when he hit it. You could tell everybody wanted to know, would it tie the ball game?

And at six, yes, it did. Appo! For PCA, and I love Pat Hughes's description right there. He calls it a dream. Last year at about the same time, he called it like being in a movie watching Pete Crowe Armstrong. So he emits those

sort of platitudes and responses, as has this entire Cubs team with all the walk-offs. Three straight, up to six on the season altogether, I believe. Yeah, it's incredible. Like, what way are they going to walk it off today? Walk off balk? Sweet.

What's next? Yeah. So, since April 21st, 15-game stretch, PCA is batting 375. That's 6 for 16 with one home run and 4 RBI against left-handed pitchers, too. So that's notable. His chase rate, as we know, is something he will have to manage. Last year, his chase rate was 41%. on strikes outside of the zone.

This year that's up to 43. This is that part of it I don't love. And I wondered how that was going to be managed. What were the adjustments that he was going to make? Or have we just reached the point of his career where there might be some self-acceptance going on? I was going to say there is, I mean, maybe not this early, but there is a he is what he is factor that maybe we're seeing,

but there's still place. Plenty, plenty of room for him to expand out of that. Expans a bad word, though. It is. In this case, it really is. The phrase shooter shoot comes to mind with PCA. Yeah. Like, if he's in the NBA, he's attempting like 40 shots a game.

Well, Laila, he's also gotten away with it for his entire career, including the torrid pace of the first half of last year, where you can go back and look at those at bats and see how many bad balls. He swung out and hit the ball out of the park on. Yeah, you know, it's great to be a bad ball hitter, but the problem is you end up expanding your strike zone, as we discuss, and your chase rate is ridiculous. But here's what Craig Counsel had to say about what he's doing right now. I told Flash before the at bat, like you just don't know what's going to happen when Pete comes up, you know. It's just, you know, it's not supposed to happen, but then it happens, and that's kind of Pete, you know.

So, you know, I can't explain a lot of his at-bats personally. That's great. the most human. That's what we're looking for from Craig. Just a human, actual, involuntary reaction to a question that is being asked of him. And he's like all of us. Like some of it, you just can't get that deeply into. It's like, I don't know how this guy just did that.

I don't know. Your shrug is everything in this, in this demonstration. Yeah. I think you're, are you still thinking about the afternoon show interviews with Craig? Is that what you're thinking about when you said that? I think so. Yeah. A response like that would be perfect.

We're going to commandeer Craig for Rahimi Harrison Grotie just one day out of the season. And we're going to just pepper him with ridiculous stuff and see if we crack him. Yeah. Or do we crack? I mean, it's like how can you not present? I mean, that's probably the response from most managers

when it comes to PCA. Yeah, there's stuff that will frustrate the hell out of you. But then he'll get up there and do what. He looked bad and part of that at bat too. He swung and missed at one where it's like, boy. The timing is really bad when he's off. Yeah.

Like it's like you know what he's swinging for and that's okay. I could accept that he was swinging for a home run and he was and then somehow, some way, he hits the ball out of the park going opposite of field and it's just a beautiful, sometimes inexplicable thing when it comes to PCA. I just don't want all of it to be touch and feel. I want some of it to have a basis and an approach. I agree. Some of it.

I'm not asking for all of it. I just need some of it, too? Like, what are you hunting for besides vibes? Yeah. Yeah, well, and I said it, I don't remember what I said, probably the off season this year. With, what do you, 34 home runs last year, 31, 34, somewhere between 31 and 34 home runs last year. Once you know you can do that, you're going to be wanting to swing to hit the ball out of the park. And I'm not so sure that PCA has stopped doing that.

We've seen him shorten up in Buntle, bit more this year. And it is being confirmed to me now through my source, Laila Rahimi, that he hit 31 home runs last year, if I'm reading you're right. I just double-checked online, yes. But no, you're right. But I feel like he does bump, though. That was something that he did last year, too. Yeah, and successfully some this year, too. I don't know if he has been doing it as much recently, but he has been, he was successful early this year. I just don't want him to think that that's the only way he's getting on first base if he's not hitting a home run. I'm okay, though, but that's That's what I don't want.

I think it's okay for any badder, but we'll just use PCA, when you feel like you're just overmatched at the plate. Or you're trying to get on base somehow. Or you're just trying to get on base to set the team. But you see that with players. Like if they just know that a pitcher has their number and they're just like, screw it. I am overmatched here. I'm going to lay down a bun and see what happens.

Yeah. Unfortunately, there's bunting is a lost art in the league, as we know. It is. Now, he talks a lot to, PCA talked a lot to Pat McAfee about how he manages that. that aggression in the plate discipline. That's always been the hardest thing for me, really. I mean, I love to swing the bat. I love to try and make stuff happen with the bat.

So, you know, I think the plate discipline is actually a little bit better, like I would say a little over a week ago, and before that. But, you know, when I start feeling sexier and I do start putting more balls in play, more balls in the air to the pull side, like I do end up swinging more. So I'm inevitably going to chase more. And that's just, I think that just, that's something like, got to accept about myself, but I'm just, I'm not going to walk that much, man.

But when the bat's feeling good, then I got to let it rip sometimes. Vives. Yeah, man. When I start feeling sexier, that is a thing. You will have batters feel sexy at the plate. Frank Thomas always talked about that on White Sox pre and post game.

I believe that used to come up with Joe Madden and the 2016 Cubs and Javier Baez and whatnot. Yeah, you got to feel good. You got to feel sexy. You can't escape the Javier Baez comps with PCA. Can't. Yeah, that it's, it's a fair comp. I mean,

Javier Baez had that, that unbelievable season where he was runner up. To Christian Yellet, 2018. Oh, Yelly. Oh, Yelly got him that year. And I don't think he was ever as good then. But man, like,

what an entertaining, terrific ball player, Javier Baez was with the Cubs. And the snagging tag, he too, also just fantastic defensively. Yeah. Absolutely terrific at it. But yeah, I do love, as frustrating as PCA can be sometimes in some of his ad bats,

still, every single time he comes up to the plate, I'm like, what's going to happen here? You know what I mean? Like, you just, like, no other player on the Cubs, the options are just lengthy when it comes to what might happen with PC. Even if he walks. I remember getting hit by a pitch earlier, and he was pissed. And he was like, you knew he was going to steal on the first pitch just because he was angry.

And he did, he did. Every ad bat is a movie. Every ad bat is a movie with PCA. Wait, wasn't that the Pat Hughes call? We always play. It's a movie starring me. Well, he said in this call coming into the thing that it's a dream. Last year it was a movie, but the possibilities he's still the guy.

No matter what has gone on this year with some terrific Cubs hitting and Nico Horner and everybody in that lineup, It's still PCA that I am most glued to when he's in that batters box. Because you also love chaos. Like you love it. You're junkie. You like all the different outcomes. I do. I do.

And he presents that. He presents every single possible outcome, including stealing every base when he gets on. And I'm out here just appreciating old Matt Boyd, the dad who stood up. And here he is just playing with his kids. Should we send him some flowers or something? Farragul. get on the phone. Let's get some flowers out to Matthew Boyd immediately. He'll probably just dedicate him to his wife because Mother Day is on Sunday.

Oh, my God, you're right. He'll put him in a nice vase. He'll just do the right thing again. Man, this guy. I know. Oh, man, boy. I hope, you know what? I hope when it's all sudden done, Matthew Boyd stays with the Cubs organization in some way, shape, or form. Or is he too nice to stay with the Cubs organization? Wait, what? Because you got to have, you got to be a little. This is a hot take. Because you got to be real with guys. Like he would be too nice to everybody. If he was like in a position of authority, you know, he would. Is Matt Boyd too nice for the Cubs?

Light him off. 312, 44, 67, 67. I don't think he'd get critical enough with guys. So you're saying he's the manager who like, if he fired you, you wouldn't necessarily know you were fired. Yeah, you'd feel worse for him for having to do it than you would feel for yourself. I'd be like, man, hey, I'm sorry about this. Yeah, I can't.

I deserved it. I can't imagine. I can't imagine Matt Boyd find. hiring somebody, no. Yeah, so that's not going to work. Ambassador, though. It can be like Anthony Rizzo's assistant. Yeah, basically, it's like Jim Tomey, you know?

Yeah, that's a good comment. Like everybody loves Jim Tomey. Yeah, nice guy, Jim, nice guy Matt. Yes, indeed. And in the meantime, PCA, vibes. Vibes. I don't know what it ends. Let's just keep riding the wave until it crashes.

I don't think it ever ends with PCA. Like, his entire career will be vibes with the Cubs. And the words of Robert Earl Key, and the road goes on forever and the party never ends. I like that. Coming up next at his halftime, and I said I had a radio story for you all, except there's no radio.

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