Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong makes jaw-dropping catch, hits furthest homer of his career in same inning

Center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong gave the fans something to chant about twice in an inning as the Cubs beat the Brewers 5-3 on Tuesday to open the series between division rivals at Wrigley Field.

In the top of the eighth, Crow-Armstrong robbed Brice Turang of a double. He cut off the line drive in the gap in left-center field and made a diving catch just above the ground, holding on to the ball as he somersaulted to his feet.

‘‘P-C-A!’’

Crow-Armstrong then led off the bottom of the eighth and homered off the right-field scoreboard on the first pitch he saw.

What started as chants of ‘‘P-C-A!’’ morphed into those of ‘‘M-V-P!’’

“That’s the best right there, tonight,” Crow-Armstrong said of the fan support. “It’s so personable and just feels super real and cool.”

In the Cubs’ first game since MLB’s All-Star balloting update showed Crow-Armstrong leading National League outfielders in voting, he seamlessly showcased the impact he can make on offense and defense.

His home run gave the Cubs welcomed insurance after four consecutive low-scoring games against the Pirates. His catch made a perfect inning possible for left-handed reliever Calebl Thielbar.

“He’s playing at as at high level as I’ve seen a center fielder play,” said manager Craig Counsell.

That’s three decades of major-league experience as a player, executive and manager talking.

“He’ll play so hard no matter what,” said Cubs starting pitcher Ben Brown, who held the brewers to two runs in five innings. “and we’re just as a team, we’re just incredibly blessed to have him out in center field.”

On a humid night with the wind blowing out, the only runs Brown allowed came on Isaac Collins’s home run in the second inning.

The Cubs cut the Brewers’ lead to 2-1 in the bottom half of the second, when Nico Hoerner scored from first base on Matt Shaw’s line-drive double into the gap in right-center field.

Then they got their big swing from Seiya Suzuki in the fifth.

With one out, Ian Happ drew a walk before Kyle Tucker hit a towering fly ball that threatened to leave the ballpark. The ball had a little too much loft, however, and it hit the wall on the way down and kicked out for a double. Suzuki followed with a no-doubt home run to give the Cubs a 4-2 lead.

“That was the hit of the game,” Crow-Armstrong said.

Reflecting the Cubs’ recent string of close games, Suzuki’s homer helped end a streak of 36 consecutive innings during which the team had finished within one run of the opponent. It was the Cubs’ longest such streak since August 2003, team historian Ed Hartig said.

Suzuki briefly pulled even with Crow-Armstrong for the team lead with 18 homers before Crow-Armstrong took back the distinction by himself.

After the Brewers pulled to 4-3 on an RBI single by Joey Ortiz in the sixth, Crow-Armstrong sent a cutter over the right-field wall in the eighth to close the scoring.

At an estimated 452 feet and an exit velocity of 111.5 mph, according to Statcast, it was both the hardest-hit ball and longest home run of Crow-Armstrong’s career.