Pete Crow-Armstrong on Wednesday homered twice and drove in four runs to help the Chicago Cubs beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 7-6 for a sweep of their three-game series, but Shohei Ohtani also went deep twice and finished with three hits.
It was quite a day in an increasingly compelling race for the National League Most Valuable Player (MVP) award.
“I do think they were going toe to toe,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “You know, obviously, there’s a lot of talk about those two guys being the front-runner for the MVP. They both showed up, and you can see that they hear what’s being said about them, and that was fun for the fans certainly.”
Photo: AP
Crow-Armstrong, 24, is Chicago’s regular center fielder, but was the designated hitter for the series finale against the Dodgers. That gave him an opportunity to take a closer look at Ohtani’s brilliance at the plate.
“I just enjoy watching him play baseball,” Crow-Armstrong said. “So I guess today for me what was cool was just getting to watch him from a different angle and not worrying about going and trying to catch balls that are hit at 1,000 miles an hour.”
Ohtani and Crow-Armstrong exchanged leadoff shots in the first inning. It was Ohtani’s 11th leadoff homer this season and No. 35 for his career. It was Crow-Armstrong’s fourth career leadoff drive — all this season.
Photo: David Banks-Imagn Images
Crow-Armstrong added an RBI double in the second and a two-run shot in the fourth, a 123m laser that went off the videoboard in right field. It was the 31st homer to hit that videoboard since it was installed in 2015.
Ohtani capped the Dodgers’ five-run eighth inning with a two-run drive to left-center. It was his first multihomer game of the season and No. 24 for his career.
“That’s two great players,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “Yeah, they were kind of doing everything offensively for their teams, for sure. Pretty impressive.”
Ohtani won his second straight National League MVP award last year, smacking 55 homers and recording a 2.87 ERA in 14 starts on the mound for the Dodgers. He is 8-2 with a 1.79 ERA in 14 starts this year, but he has not been able to pitch since July 3 because of left knee soreness and a right biceps injury.
While Ohtani has been limited to designated hitter duties of late, Crow-Armstrong has become an offensive force while playing his usual stellar defense in center. The two-time All-Star is batting .288 with 26 homers, 28 steals and 69 RBIs in 115 games. He went 6 for 13 in the series against LA with two homers and five RBIs.
At the very least, he has turned the MVP race into an intriguing competition.
“He’s a great player, but I’m really focused on myself right now on the hitting side of things and I’m really working towards hopefully getting back on the mound and just working on that side of the side of game as well,” Ohtani said through a translator.
Ohtani, a four-time MVP and six-time All-Star, certainly is not having any trouble at the plate. He is batting .457 (16 for 35) with four homers and nine RBIs during a nine-game hitting streak. He is hitting .297 with 26 homers, 70 RBIs and a .953 OPS in 109 games on the year.
“I think if you guys want to talk about all this back and forth, I really should go get in the lab and start pitching,” Crow-Armstrong cracked. “I really should.”
Elsewhere on Wednesday, the Toronto Blue Jays edged the Houston Astros 5-4 in 10 innings, the Texas Rangers toppled the San Francisco Giants 6-0, the Tampa Bay Rays blanked the Colorado Rockies 4-0, the Baltimore Orioles defeated the Los Angeles Angels 5-2 and the New York Mets beat the Cleveland Guardians 6-5 in 10 innings.
The Cincinnati Reds pipped the Athletics 3-2, the Washington Nationals rallied past the Philadelphia Phillies 10-4 in 11 innings, the St Louis Cardinals beat the New York Yankees 3-1, the Boston Red Sox defeated the Chicago White Sox 4-0 and the Atlanta Braves outplayed the Miami Marlins 4-1.
The Kansas City Royals edged the Minnesota Twins 2-1, the Milwaukee Brewers sank the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-2, the Arizona Diamondbacks dominated the San Diego Padres 10-4 and the Seattle Mariners defeated the Detroit Tigers 4-2.
Additional reporting by staff writer.
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