As the Major League Baseball season heads into June, it isn't too early to consider who might finish the year as the best players in the game.
With that in mind, MLB.com released its All-MLB Team predictions constructed by its panel of experts.
The criteria for voting included what players have done to this point in the season, as well as what voters expect to happen moving forward, per MLB.com.
It’s no shock that the Chicago Cubs have players that made the cut. Outfielders Pete Crow-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker made the All-MLB second team in these early projections.
The dynamic duo of Crow-Armstrong and Tucker have lifted the Cubs to a three-game lead in the National League Central with a 33-21 record.
Everyone knew what Tucker was capable of, and he has lived up to the expectations while still having more in the tank. Tucker has 12 home runs and 39 RBI, slashing .280/.382/.531 in 54 games with the Cubs in his first and potentially last season with the team.
After Crow-Armstrong was called up a month into the 2024 season, he struggled to hit MLB pitching. He hit 10 home runs and drove in 47 runs, slashing just .237/.286/.384 in 123 games. He was still the great defender and fast runner we know today, but the bat wasn’t there just yet.
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This season, Crow-Armstrong has silenced the haters. In only 54 games, he has 14 home runs with 48 RBI (tied for second in MLB) and is slashing .280/.310/.565. He is well on his way to his first Gold Glove Award with nine outs above average, which ranks in the 99th percentile.
If Tucker and Crow-Armstrong continue their hot starts, paired with Seiya Suzuki’s hot start, the Cubs will find themselves back in the playoffs for the first time since 2020.
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