Pete Crow-Armstrong joins 40-40 club as 7th player in MLB history

Pete Crow-Armstrong has done something only six players in the history of major league baseball had done before him: reach 40 home runs and 40 stolen bases in the same season. MLB.com's Jordan Bastian reported the milestone, with the Cubs announcing the achievement for their outfielder.

What happened

Crow-Armstrong crossed the 40-40 threshold, making him the 7th member of one of the sport's most exclusive statistical clubs. The combination of power and speed required to reach both marks in a single season has historically been rare enough that the list of players who have done it remains short enough to count on two hands — with fingers to spare.

Why it matters

The 40-40 club is not a marketing construct. It is a genuine test of two skills that rarely coexist at elite levels simultaneously: the raw power to hit 40 home runs and the speed and baserunning instincts to steal 40 bases. Most players who can do one cannot do the other at that volume. The fact that only six players had reached the mark before Crow-Armstrong — across the entire history of the sport — underscores how unusual this season has been.

For the Cubs, the timing carries additional weight. The club is in the final stretch of the regular season, with a home game against the Miami Marlins at Wrigley Field on Thursday, September 24, followed by a road series at Fenway Park against the Boston Red Sox on Friday, September 25. A player producing at a 40-40 pace heading into October is exactly the kind of presence a postseason roster is built around.

The milestone also lands against a complicated backdrop for Chicago. Alex Bregman sustained facial fractures after being hit by a foul ball, and per multiple reports, a postseason return is reportedly possible, though not guaranteed. Bregman has been ramping up activity as he works toward a return. Crow-Armstrong's achievement offers a counterweight to that uncertainty — a reminder of what this roster is capable of when healthy and clicking.

What we don't know yet

The exact home run and stolen base totals that pushed Crow-Armstrong to the milestone are not detailed in Jordan Bastian's report for MLB.com, nor is the precise game context in which the mark was reached. The club announced the milestone, but the specific moment was not described in the available material.

On the Bregman front, the timeline for his return remains uncertain. Reports from earlier this week indicated he could return to the lineup this weekend and is hopeful to be available for the playoffs, with surgery reportedly not expected — but none of that has been characterized as a formal announcement.

What to watch

With the regular season winding down and the Cubs preparing for a potential postseason run, Crow-Armstrong's health and continued production will be worth monitoring. So will Bregman's status as the club approaches its final regular-season games. The road series at Fenway on Friday, September 25, with Clay Holmes listed as the probable starter, gives Chicago another opportunity to sharpen its roster picture before October arrives.

For now, though, the number is seven. Seven players in the history of the sport. Crow-Armstrong is one of them.