Cubs Beat Mets 9-6 as Edward Cabrera Suffers Leg Injury on 99th Pitch

Q: Is Pete Crow-Armstrong's historic surge becoming the worst trade in New York Mets history?

Not yet. Pete Crow-Armstrong’s breakout is making the Javier Báez trade look increasingly painful for the Mets, but it is still too early and too broad a claim to call it the worst trade in franchise history. The case for regret is obvious. Crow-Armstrong, whom the Mets drafted 19th overall in 2020 and sent to the Cubs in 2021 for Báez and Trevor Williams, is now in the middle of a major surge. After Tuesday’s game, he was up to 17 home runs, 18 steals, 46 RBIs and a .285 average, with 10 homers in June alone. He also has a 24-game on-base streak and has produced a rare 23-game stretch that puts him in historic company. His three-run homer against New York only sharpened the optics. For the Mets, the return was short-lived. Báez was a rental, helped them only briefly in 2021, and then left in free agency. That is the kind of trade that can age badly when the prospect becomes an impact everyday player. Still, “worst in Mets history” is a much higher bar. The available reporting does not support that label yet. Recent assessments of the Mets’ biggest regrets have focused more on other costly decisions, including Bo Bichette’s contract and the Freddy Peralta trade package. Franchise-history judgments also require longer-term perspective on Crow-Armstrong’s career. So the trade is becoming one of the Mets’ most regrettable recent moves, and if Crow-Armstrong sustains this level, the debate will only grow. But calling it the worst in team history is premature.

3 articles · Updated · Bleed Cubbie Blue · Jun 24

Edward Cabrera left after 5.0 innings with a leg injury suffered while covering first base on his 99th pitch, clouding a Cubs win that otherwise looked comfortable.
Five second-inning runs put Chicago in control early, capped by Pete Crow-Armstrong's three-run homer — his 17th of the season and sixth in eight games.
Dansby Swanson added a two-run homer in the fourth and an RBI double in the eighth as the Cubs built a 9-3 lead before Jayden Murray allowed three ninth-inning runs.
The injury adds to Chicago's pitching strain and could increase pressure to reshuffle the rotation or seek another starter, even with a doubleheader against the Mets next.