Crow-Armstrong Crushes Two Homers, Cubs Hold Off Ohtani's Comeback

Pete Crow-Armstrong went 3-for-5 with 2 home runs and 4 RBI to power Chicago past Los Angeles 7-6 on August 5. The Cubs needed every bit of it — Shohei Ohtani answered with 2 home runs and 3 RBI of his own in a game that refused to stay decided.

The story of the night was how quickly this game got away from Los Angeles, and how long it took them to admit it. Ohtani struck first, homering to right center (376 feet) in the first to put the Dodgers up 1-0. Crow-Armstrong answered immediately — a 420-foot shot to center that tied it before the inning was out. From there, Chicago took control. In the second, a Swanson double scored Hoerner, then Crow-Armstrong doubled to right to score Swanson, and just like that it was 3-1 Cubs. Los Angeles managed a single run the rest of the way through six innings.

The knockout blow came in the fourth. Crow-Armstrong launched a 405-foot homer to right that scored Taylor, pushing Chicago to 5-1, and the win probability swung from 79% to 92% on that one swing. Bregman followed with a single to left that scored Suzuki, making it 6-1. The Cubs weren't done — Hoerner doubled to left in the seventh to score Busch, extending the lead to 7-1, a play the Dodgers challenged and lost. Shota Imanaga held Los Angeles to 1 earned run over 5.0 innings, allowing 8 hits but walking nobody and striking out 6. Tyler Ferguson then threw 2.0 scoreless innings with 3 strikeouts. Chicago's pitching looked like it had this wrapped up.

Then Ohtani happened again. Max Muncy's three-run homer to right center (413 feet) in the eighth — scoring Tucker and Betts — suddenly made it 7-4. Two batters later, Ohtani went deep to left center (367 feet), scoring Rojas, and Los Angeles was within one at 7-6. The Dodgers had gone from a six-run deficit to a one-run game in a matter of minutes. Mookie Betts went 4-for-5 and Ohtani finished 3-for-5 with 2 HR and 3 RBI — the Dodgers' offense was not the problem. But Chicago's early damage, built almost entirely on Crow-Armstrong's bat, proved to be just enough. The Cubs held on for the 7-6 final, and Crow-Armstrong's two-homer, four-RBI night looks like the clearest reason why.