Craig Counsell's comments on Cubs' supposed savior music to Reds fans' ears

In a pretty short amount of time, Pete Crow-Armstrong has quickly become a chief villain amongst Cincinnati Reds fans. He plays for the rival Cubs which certainly ratchets up the hatred a bit, he can be very good which makes him relevant, and he also has a swagger about him that makes his fans love him and opposing fans despise him. Hell, even the Reds' broadcast has gotten in on the fun this year.

However, Crow-Armstrong's star has faded dramatically after his hot start to the 2025 season. Once thought to be a viable MVP candidate this season, Crow-Armstrong has struggled mightily with a .225/.267/.437 line over his last 76 games.

While PCA's famously aggressive approach seems to the bulk of the problem, things have gotten so bad that Craig Counsell has had to give Crow-Armstrong two games off while indicating that the Reds' budding nemesis needs a "real break" and an actual reset.

Reds fans may be getting the Pete Crow-Armstrong downfall they have been hoping for

If we are being honest, it is unlikely that Crow-Armstrong is going to stay terrible forever. His defense in the outfield gives him a pretty high floor from the start and as annoying as it is, he is very talented. Odds are that he will get back on track and get back to terrorizing Reds fans soon enough.

However, there is a chance that Counsell sees something deeply wrong here with PCA and is trying to get ahead of it. Crow-Armstrong struggled to make consistent contact in his first full season last year and while his physical talent is obvious, he is going to have to make consistent contact for those tools to matter at all and there is no guarantee that he will ever be a star at this point.

In some ways, it is kind of a shame if Crow-Armstrong ends up being a bust. Baseball is more fun when you have proper villains and for all his faults, Crow-Armstrong embraces that role as good as anyone. It is fun to think about worlds where he could have ended up with the Reds and if that would have changed fan perceptions of him in Cincinnati.

That said, if his struggles mean that the Cubs are in for a long stretch of pure suffering, it will still probably be worth that loss.

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