Cubs top prospect: Hoerner, Swanson are 'what Cubbie baseball' should be

Chicago Cubs top prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong has two role models in the organization he looks up to.

"Nico Hoerner, I think the best way to describe the Cubs in (one) player, it's him," the 20-year-old outfielder said, according to Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. "The guy hits. He's going to be one of the better players at his position for years to come."

Crow-Armstrong didn't stop the praise at just Hoerner, who produced a breakout campaign at 25 years old last season. He also said he admires shortstop Dansby Swanson, who signed a seven-year, $177-million contract with the Cubs this winter after getting poached from the Atlanta Braves via free agency.

"If you were to ask, like, 'What kind of style of baseball do the Cubs play?' You'd say, 'Go watch our shortstop and second baseman.' I think it's as simple as that," Crow-Armstrong added. "You go watch Dansby or Nico Hoerner, and it's like, 'All right, yeah, that's what Cubbie baseball should look like.' They're great people to look up to."

The New York Mets selected Crow-Armstrong 19th overall in the 2020 MLB Draft. Just over a year later, the Mets traded him to the Cubs for Javier Baez and Trevor Williams.

Across 101 games between two minor-league levels in 2022, Crow-Armstrong hit .312/.376/.520 with 16 homers and 32 stolen bases, maxing out at High-A. Considered the top prospect in the Cubs' system by MLB Pipeline, Crow-Armstrong is a non-roster invitee to spring training camp this year.

Entering his age-26 season, Hoerner is coming off a campaign in which he hit 10 homers and stole 20 bases over 135 games. Relied upon at shortstop on occasion, Hoerner will almost certainly stay at second base in 2023, ceding the position to Swanson, who won a Gold Glove last year while posting a .776 OPS with 25 homers and 18 steals.