NEW YORK — All-Star Pete Crow-Armstrong’s performance not only has given the Cubs an offensive boost and put him in the early MVP conversation; it also could come with a substantial added financial benefit.
Crow-Armstrong is on pace to earn more than $1 million from the pre-arbitration bonus pool, based on WAR calculations, according to the Associated Press.
The bonus-pool system was established in the collective-bargaining agreement (2022-2026). A total of 100 players will receive payments this year.
Awards determine part of the allocation. Eligible players will receive $2.5 million for winning an MVP or Cy Young award, $1.75 million for a second-place finish, $1.5 million for third and $1 million for fourth or fifth. All-MLB first-team selections get $1 million and second-team selections $500,000.
Rookie of the Year winners are in line for $750,000, runners-up $500,000, third-place finishers $350,000, fourth-place finishers $250,000 and fifth-place finishers $150,000.
The rest of the money in the $50 million pool is allocated based on WAR, a category that Crow-Armstrong leads among players who have not hit arbitration.
The pre-arbitration bonus pool was created to award players early in their careers, when their earning potential is at its lowest, for high-level performance.
Crow-Armstrong earned $342,128 from the bonus pool last year.
Happ out of lineup
Left fielder Ian Happ was out of the lineup Friday against Yankees left-handed starter Carlos Rodon.
“Ian’s been struggling,” manager Craig Counsell said before the game. “Just a mental break, essentially. Being able to show up and not have to worry about getting hits when you’re struggling is helpful sometimes.”
Happ had only two hits in his last 10 games (.056 batting average). He still drew eight walks, but that only brought his on-base percentage to .227 in that span.
“It’s not that bad,” Counsell said. “It’s definitely not as bad as maybe the numbers look. It’s not strikeouts and swing-and-miss. He’s hitting a bunch of balls hard foul, and then there’s a flyout or something like that in there. It’s just one of those things that you go through. And as you’re going through it, it’s not fun.”
With Happ out, Seiya Suzuki started in left field, and second baseman Nico Hoerner hit leadoff.
It isn’t the first time this year that Counsell has used a day off to give a struggling hitter some relief. Rookie Matt Shaw was out of the lineup Wednesday to give him a break from game action and time to work on his swing. Shaw returned Thursday but was out of the lineup again Friday. He did pinch-hit in the ninth and flied out.
Boyd replaced on All-Star roster
Brewers rookie Jacob Misiorowski will replace Cubs lefty Matthew Boyd on the National League All-Star roster. Boyd will be unavailable because he’s scheduled to start Saturday against the Yankees.
Misiorowski has made only five starts, going 4-1 with a 2.81 ERA. If he pitches in the game, he’ll set the record for fewest big-league games before an All-Star appearance. The Pirates’ Paul Skenes holds the record with 11 starts when he was chosen as the NL starter last year.