(670 The Score) Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstong encountered one of his franchise’s all-time great players Friday morning.
Former Cubs star Sammy Sosa was back at Wrigley Field for the first time in more than two decades. He's set to be honored during the Cubs' game against the Mariners on Friday afternoon, but before that, Sosa visited with current players in the clubhouse.
Crow-Armstrong was thrilled to visit with Sosa, whom he first met during spring training.
“I think having him back is very important,” Crow-Armstrong said on the Mully & Haugh Show. “And I don’t really know all that much about his journey over the last 10 to 20 years, but being a watcher of baseball, I think it’s really hard not to appreciate what he did in a Cubs uniform. So, I’m glad he’s back. It was nice to see him excited, at least that’s what it seemed. I mean, the energy that guy has for baseball, the enthusiasm he has for all of our processes as current Cubs right now, it’s awesome. He’s super supportive. And I think it’s right that he’s back in a place that he spent a lot of good years.
“He really just kind of gives off a real feeling of some love towards the game of baseball. His enthusiasm just talking about the game is amazing. It’s really cool just seeing him every time. The first time we connected, he was super complimentary about my game. And that was before he had seen anything happen this year. That was before I had a lot of anything to show for it. It means a lot hearing nice compliments from a guy like that when he did it so successfully for a while.”
The 23-year-old Crow-Armstrong is enjoying a breakthrough season, one in which he has become the first Cubs player to hit 20 home runs and steal 20 bases before the All-Star break. He's leading all National League outfielders in All-Star voting and has emerged as an MVP candidate.
Sosa was a seven-time All-Star and the National League MVP back in 1998, a season in which he hit 66 home runs.
The Cubs and Mariners begin their series at 1:20 p.m. Friday at Wrigley Field. The game can be heard on 670 The Score, with pregame coverage starting at 12:45 p.m.