Pete Crow-Armstrong hits 40th homer, first Cub to do it in 20 years

Pete Crow-Armstrong sent a pitch just inside the right field foul pole in the fifth inning Sunday in Miami. It was his 40th home run of the season, the first time a Cubs player has reached that mark since Derrek Lee hit 46 in 2005.

Baseball Reference's Stathead tool confirmed the 20-year gap. Sunday also happened to be Lee's birthday.

Crow-Armstrong became just the second left-handed hitter in Cubs history to hit 40 or more homers in a season, joining Billy Williams, who did it in 1970. At 24, he is also the second Cubs player to hit 40 homers before turning 25, a mark that until Sunday belonged only to Ernie Banks.

The 40th homer also puts Crow-Armstrong within one of the major league lead. He trails Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies, a former Cub, for the top spot in baseball. No Cubs player has finished a season atop the majors in home runs since Sammy Sosa hit 50 in 2000.

Crow-Armstrong arrived in the majors known more for his glove than his bat. The Cubs drafted him for his defense in center field and his speed on the bases, and early scouting reports focused on contact and athleticism rather than power. The power arrived faster than expected. He entered this season with a career high far short of 40, and by September he had passed every Cubs left-handed hitter except Williams and every Cubs player under 25 except Banks.

The Cubs have needed the production. Chicago has spent the season fighting to hold position in a crowded National League Central, and Crow-Armstrong's power has given the lineup a middle-of-the-order threat it has lacked in recent years. His speed, defense and now power have made him part of the National League MVP discussion this season.

Sunday's game in Miami closed out the Cubs' series with the Marlins. The team now moves on to a three-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers, starting Monday afternoon, with Milwaukee holding the division lead. Crow-Armstrong's at-bats in that series will factor into both playoff positioning and his home run race with Schwarber, who has spent the second half of the season chasing his own total for the Phillies.

The last Cub to lead the league outright in homers was Sosa in 2000. Crow-Armstrong's pursuit is different: he is 24, with speed and defensive value already established before the power numbers caught up.

His name now sits with Banks and Williams in the Cubs record book. Lee's more recent mark is gone too. What Crow-Armstrong does over the season's final weeks, starting Monday in Milwaukee, will decide whether he adds the outright home run title to that list or finishes one swing short of Schwarber and the Phillies.