20-20 History Made
Cubs power past Orioles 9-7 with five homers, fueled by Crow-Armstrong's historic 20-20 season
Key Points
Baltimore’s Tyler O’Neill came off the bench in the seventh as a pinch hitter and homered, then added a second homer in the eighth, giving him two blasts in the game.
Coby Mayo delivered a pinch-hit homer in the eighth for Baltimore, adding to the late-inning scoring flair.
Dean Kremer yielded four solo homers in a four-batter span (Conforto, Kelly, Crow-Armstrong) after Pete Alonso’s two-run shot, fueling Chicago’s surge.
Colin Rea earned the win for the Cubs, his second consecutive victory, improving to 7-5 on the season.
Conforto and Kelly opened Chicago’s fifth inning with back-to-back solo homers on the first two pitches, tying the game after Baltimore had taken a lead earlier.
Pete Crow-Armstrong made history on Tuesday night, becoming the first MLB player this season with at least 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases. The 24-year-old Cubs center fielder hit two homers as Chicago outslugged the Baltimore Orioles 9-7, according to ArcaMax.
The Cubs now own a win streak powered by a five-run seventh inning that erased a Baltimore lead. Nine home runs flew out of the park on the night, four of them coming off Orioles starter Dean Kremer in one stunning span.
Five Homers Fuel Chicago's Big Comeback
Baltimore jumped out to a 3-1 lead early. Then Chicago's bats exploded. In the fifth inning, Michael Conforto and Carson Kelly hit back-to-back solo homers on the first two pitches they saw, according to Cubs Insider. Crow-Armstrong followed with another solo shot to put the Cubs ahead.
In the seventh, Seiya Suzuki delivered a three-run homer to blow the game open. The Cubs scored five runs in that inning alone. Kremer gave up four solo homers in a four-batter span during Chicago's surge, and the Orioles never recovered, Head Topics reported.
Crow-Armstrong Joins Rare Cubs 20-20 Club
Crow-Armstrong's 21st homer also gave him the 20-20 milestone — 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases in the same season. Only two other Cubs have ever done that more than once: Ryne Sandberg and Sammy Sosa, according to ArcaMax.
Even rarer, Crow-Armstrong and Sosa are the only Cubs players to pull off back-to-back 20-20 seasons. Crow-Armstrong achieved the feat last year too. He hit his first homer of the night in the third inning off Kremer, then added his second later in the game, per MLB.com.
O'Neill and Mayo Spark Baltimore's Late Push
The Orioles did not go quietly. Tyler O'Neill came off the bench as a pinch hitter in the seventh and homered. He then hit a second homer in the eighth inning, giving him two blasts in the game, Head Topics reported.
Coby Mayo added a pinch-hit homer in the eighth as well. Jackson Holliday went 4-for-5 for Baltimore. But Gunnar Henderson went 0-for-5 with two double plays, squandering key chances. The Orioles' late scoring was too little, too late.
Rea Earns Win, Webb Locks It Down
Cubs starter Colin Rea got the win, improving his record to 7-5 on the season. It was his second straight victory. Rea kept Chicago in the game long enough for the offense to take over, per MLB.com.
Jacob Webb closed it out with a perfect ninth inning for his fourth save of the year, sealing the 9-7 final. The Cubs continue to roll, and Crow-Armstrong's historic night gives the team a genuine star to build around heading deeper into the season.
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