Pete Crow-Armstrong Blasts Umpires After Missed Balk Call Following Cubs’ 2-0 Loss

Pete Crow-Armstrong was left livid and went off at the officials after they missed a balk call which would have resulted in Cubs taking the lead.

Pete Crow-Armstrong Blasts Umpires After Missed Balk Call Following Cubs’ 2-0 Loss

Pete Crow-Armstrong (Image via X/@SleeperCubs)

Pete Crow-Armstrong was left fuming with the MLB umpires on Wednesday. After a missed balk call during the rubber game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Chicago Cubs star blasted the officials.

The series finale at Chase Field saw the Cubs’ Matthew Boyd go up against Eduardo Rodriguez. The two southpaws were locked in an intense pitching duel. It was a moment in the 6th inning that stole the spotlight.

In the top of the 6th inning, Crow-Armstrong found himself on third base following a leadoff double and a groundout by Seiya Suzuki. After Alex Bregman flew out for the second out, Michael Busch stepped up to the plate.

On a 2-1 count, PCA started to break for home. He believed that Rodriguez had stepped off the mound during his windup, which would result in a balk call. While the pitch from the D-backs starter was way out of the zone and called a ball, the umpires did not call for a balk.

The slow-motion replays did show Rodriguez step off the rubber a bit. However, there is no review available for a non-call. Had the balk been called, Crow-Armstrong would have come home to score and put the Cubs up 1- 0.

While Busch ended up working a walk, Nico Hoerner struck out swinging for the final out to end the inning. Crow-Armstrong remained stranded on third base.

In the bottom of the inning, Jordan Lawlar crushed a solo home run to give the D-backs the lead. The NL West side picked up a 2-0 win and won the series.

Following the game, Crew chief Alfonso Marquez admitted that the officials made a mistake and that it should have been a balk call.

We just didn’t see it.

Alfonso Marquez told the reporters

With the admission from the official, Crow-Armstrong was left livid. While speaking with the reporters, the 24-year-old blasted the umpires and expressed that they find new ways to “screw” something every day.

They’re out there every day like we are. Their one job is to get calls right & if they get it wrong they’re supposed to talk about it, figure it out & get it right. And they didn’t. … I think they find new ways to screw something up every day.

Pete Crow-Armstrong said via Meghan Montemurro

While the decision did not go their way, the Cubs did not have the best of games either. They had just 2 hits in the game, with Tyrone Taylor‘s single in the 5th inning being the only other hit apart from PCA’s double in the sixth.

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Pete Crow-Armstrong struggled in the series against the D-backs

Pete Crow-Armstrong did not have a good time in the series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. In the 3-game series, the Chicago Cubs star struggled offensively and managed just 1 hit in 12 at-bats.

Pete Crow-Armstrong
Pete Crow-Armstrong (Image via X/@Punchoutpitch)

The outfielder is currently in the midst of an NL MVP race alongside Shohei Ohtani. Earlier this week, he topped an MLB.com voting poll with 29 first-place votes.

In the first two games against the D-backs, he was hitless. While he broke his barren run with a double on Wednesday, he was unable to help his team win the series. His batting average later dropped to .179 over the last 7 games.

With this loss, the Cubs were left with a 76-58 record. While they remain 6.5 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers for first place in the NL Central division, they occupy the first spot in the Wild Card standings. Up next for them is a 3-game home series against the Cincinnati Reds before a huge 4-game home series against the Brewers.

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