By the end of Friday night’s 3-2 loss at the hands of the Pittsburgh Pirates at Wrigley Field, the Chicago Cubs were greeted with scattered boos. At the forefront was Cubs’ star phenom Pete Crow-Armstrong, whose MVP campaign continues to lose steam. PCA has been going only 1-for-20 in his last five games. Over the past few weeks, he has posted a very disappointing .193 OPS. Yet, he ranks second to the Dodgers’ star Shohei Ohtani in the National League in fWAR (5.5) and is relatively close to joining Sammy Sosa as one of the only Cubs ever to hit 30 home runs and steal 30 bases in one season.

However, Friday night’s sequence of blunders by the Cubs and PCA simply strengthened Shohei Ohtani’s MVP case. As the Cubs’ offense struggled to capitalize, Crow-Armstrong was stuck at third base after his double during the second inning.

He desperately tried to generate more offense in the fourth inning, only to get thrown out at second when he tried to stretch an RBI single into a double. Then, later during the seventh, the Cubs star was hit by a pitch, but he still scored on Matt Shaw’s sacrifice fly.

However, the Cubs couldn’t record the big hit required to keep the Pirates away. By the ninth inning, PCA was just as amped up to shift the odds. He hit a leadoff single and tried to steal second base. But he was tagged out when his head-first slide pushed him past the base. After the game, Cubs manager Craig Counsell opened up about PCA, reflecting on his game.

“If we’ve got Pete Crow-Armstrong on first, we’re going to run. It’s a risk, of course. And that’s what happens with the risk, unfortunately. But I think we’ll always try to be aggressive in that situation.” The skipper defended PCA’s play. But the team’s offense struggled mightily throughout the game. It left runners stranded and failed to record a big hit.

PCA is widely known for his speed, and that same aggression on base paths becomes a way to create opportunities, as per Counsell. Crow-Armstrong also shared his take after the 3-2 loss to the Pirates. “The Cubbies are going to keep playing the same baseball we played all year,” Crow-Armstrong mentioned. “It’s been an interesting two weeks, but we’re fine. I don’t think there’s any worry in the world.” Well true that the Cubs had a sensational start to this season, but…

They have struggled monstrously entering the second half. In two weeks, they have witnessed their division lead evaporate over the Milwaukee Brewers. They are eight games behind in the NL Central, and after Friday’s loss, the slump has deepened.

Craig Counsell’s lessons amidst the Cubs’ Offensive struggles

Just hours before Friday’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, PCA had a word with his manager. Well, the 23-year-old enjoys spending time with Counsell. This particular conversation was a follow-up on the discussion these two had in Toronto. Counsel had asked PCA that time, “What did you learn this week?”

The skipper, along with the veteran teammates, was trying to emphasize how to contribute to the game in other ways when the bats go quiet. “Those are great lessons to learn,” Counsell pointed out.

According to Crow-Armstrong, “There becomes the self-inflicted pressure. When you feel like you’re not playing your part and contributing. At the end of the day, I think that’s a bit of a more selfish approach.” PCA sees it as the hard part of this game. He admitted not being able to make the right decisions on the base paths and that he has shown it recently.

The Cubs were once hailed across the league as one of the top run-producing clubs during the first season. However, after the All-Star break, they have stumbled, with Kyle Tucker batting only .182, Seiya Suzuki batting at .185, and PCA at .233 with 8 RBIs. Collectively, their struggles reflect on the urgency behind Counsell’s message to find impact beyond the batter’s box.