Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong Salutes Newly Cancer-Free Ryne Sandberg With Special Cleats
![Aug 12, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong (52) celebrates his solo home run in the fourth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field. Aug 12, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong (52) celebrates his solo home run in the fourth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field.](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_3000,h_1687,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/si/01j5gt0jcz1x1cyjzkgr.jpg)
Hall of Fame former Chicago Cubs infielder Ryne Sandberg remains a revered figure on the North Side. As a result, his January prostate cancer diagnosis hit Cubs fans hard.
However, on Thursday, Sandberg announced on Instagram that he was cancer-free. To celebrate Sandberg's news and raise cancer awareness, Chicago center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong wore special cleats for the Cubs' game against the Toronto Blue Jays Saturday.
Before the game, Crow-Armstrong showed off the cleats to a touched Sandberg; Chicago posted video of the encounter on social media.
"I got [your name] on there and one of my old baseball coaches' initials," Crow-Armstrong told Sandberg.
Ryno approved. 🥹✔️ pic.twitter.com/TSga8HwZyk
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) August 17, 2024
Sandberg also chuckled at the presence of his signature on the cleats.
"That's early years. I got a fancier one now," Sandberg said. "This is [1982, '83]. That's a classic."
In 15 seasons with the Cubs, Sandberg slashed .285/.344/.452 with 282 home runs and 1,061 RBIs—winning the National League MVP award in 1984 and finishing in the top five in voting in '89 and '90.