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The Birth of a Cubs Legend

In this episode, The 162-Game Exhale — and the Birth of a Cubs Legend

There’s a hush in the baseball world on Game 162 — a collective breath drawn in and slowly released. Scoreboards stop flipping. Dugouts empty. For six months, the game has been our steady heartbeat, pulsing from the cherry blossoms of Tokyo in March to the crisp, playoff-charged winds of late September. And now, as the regular season exhales, baseball fans everywhere pause to absorb the story we’ve just lived.

For me, that story has been deeply personal. This season unfolded in the rhythms of my daily life. It was the summer soundtrack echoing beneath the constant turmoil of politics and sensational headlines. It was a handful of carefully chosen ballpark pilgrimages stitched together with countless nights in front of MLB.TV. And at the center of it all, for a lifelong Cubs fan like me, it revolved around one name — a young center fielder who turned hope into history: Pete Crow-Armstrong.

The 2025 season didn’t begin under the familiar California sun but on the international stage. In late March, the Cubs faced the Dodgers in Tokyo, and Pete Crow-Armstrong — still more promise than proven — stepped onto the field with the weight of a century-old franchise on his shoulders. Even during a Dodgers sweep, you saw it: the quick first step in center, controlled basepath aggression, and a swing hinting at future dominance. It was just a spark — the fuse was lit.

Our personal scorecard of the season began shortly after, providing anchors to the league-wide story we followed on TV:

  • March 24, 2025 (Angels 5, Dodgers 4): An early exhibition thriller at Angel Stadium. Taylor Ward hit a lead-off homer and later secured a dramatic walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth. Dodgers ace Tyler Glasnow collected 10 strikeouts over five sharp innings, a pitching display that made the night unforgettable.
  • June 15, 2025 (Dodgers 5, Giants 4): At Dodger Stadium, rivalry and clutch power defined the game. Andy Pages’ three-run homer in the fifth inning propelled the Dodgers ahead, and Tanner Scott sealed the win.
  • July 24, 2025 (Mariners 4, Angels 2): Our mid-summer visit to Angel Stadium showcased the Mariners’ balanced attack. Julio Rodríguez and Randy Arozarena homered in the fifth, Jorge Polanco added an eighth-inning shot, and Logan Evans held the Angels to just one run over five innings. Mike Trout contributed an RBI single, inching closer to 1,000 career RBIs. Cal Raleigh didn’t homer that night, but his season-long power surge was undeniable — he would ultimately finish with 60 home runs, breaking both Mickey Mantle’s switch-hitter record and the catcher record.

The Rise of PCA — From Tokyo Spark to Wrigley History

Through spring’s tentative beginnings and summer’s long, hot stretch, that early spark in PCA grew into something extraordinary. Each series brought new reasons to believe: a stolen base here, a gap-splitting double there, a catch in the ivy that turned sure runs into stunned silence. It wasn’t just numbers piling up — it was a player coming of age before our eyes.

Our final stadium visit captured that sense of emergence perfectly:

  • August 24, 2025 (Cubs 4, Angels 3): As a birthday gift, Lori and I watched the Cubs take on the Angels. The 4–3 victory was pivotal for the Cubs’ playoff push and included a key contribution from PCA, who drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. The day also marked another milestone, as Taylor Ward blasted his 30th home run of the season for the Angels.

By late September, anticipation had become inevitable. On a cool afternoon at Wrigley Field, with the ivy starting to change color and the air carrying that familiar October chill, Crow-Armstrong crushed a fastball and sent it soaring into the right-field bleachers. Home run number 30. The crowd erupted — the Cubs hadn’t seen a player hit 30 homers and steal 30 bases in the same season since Sammy Sosa three decades ago.

But PCA wasn’t done. By season’s end, the 23-year-old phenom stitched together a statistical symphony no Cub had ever achieved: 30 home runs, 35 stolen bases, and 37 doubles. In 154 years of Cubs baseball — through the eras of Banks and Sandberg, Bryant and Rizzo — no one had done what Pete Crow-Armstrong did in 2025.

This wasn’t just a breakout season. It was the birth of a cornerstone. The kind of player you plan futures around. The kind of player who can tilt a franchise’s story forward.

The Long Exhale Before the Storm

With Game 162 behind us, baseball exhales. The long, daily rhythm — the box scores, the road trips, the stubborn slumps and sudden surges — gives way to something different. The regular season is a marathon, but October is a knife fight. Every pitch sharpens. Every inning matters. And the game we’ve lived with for six months becomes something far more urgent and alive.

Across the league, champions have emerged. In Seattle, Cal Raleigh’s season-long power surge cemented the Mariners’ AL West crown. In Los Angeles, the Dodgers look like a juggernaut. In Detroit and New York, familiar contenders continue their march.

But in Chicago, the air feels different — charged with something that hasn’t been here in a long time. Pete Crow-Armstrong’s 30-30-30 season wasn’t just a statistical marvel. It was a signal: the Cubs are no longer waiting for the future. They’re stepping into it.

For the first time in years, October baseball returns to Wrigley Field with more than hope. The Cubs didn’t just sneak into the postseason — they claimed a Wild Card spot and home-field advantage. And on Tuesday, as the ivy turns and the lights blaze, they’ll open the playoffs against the San Diego Padres with a swagger born of youth, speed, and belief.

This is the moment baseball fans live for — when the long, meandering story of 162 games gives way to the tight, breathless chapters of October. It’s no longer about stats. It’s about moments. Legends. History written one pitch at a time.

The exhale is over. The sprint begins now.

"Go Cubs go, go Cubs go, hey Chicago, whattya say the Cubs are gonna win today!" . . . 👊 😉

I’m Patrick Ball. Stay curious, ask questions. See you next time.

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