![]() The winding road of Jake Arrieta boils down to just this aspect. The most critical variable in pitching mechanics is timing, and a pitcher's ability to repeat his delivery is at the root of pitch command. He ended the 2013 season with a 4.78 ERA.Īre those struggles merely a thing of the past? Our own Doug Thorburn says certain mechanical adjustments this year have allowed Arrieta to be more consistent, leading to better control and improved results: Thus, he issued too many free passes undermined his above-average stuff that was largely handcuffing hitters. 212 batting average in 2013-which was 11th-best among 157 starters who threw at least 70 innings-but his 12.7 percent walk rate was the second-highest in all of baseball. Newspapers are no longer asking if Arrieta is going to make it as a big leaguer, but rather if he’s going to be elite.Ĭommand and control have historically been troublesome for Arrieta. Some articles have even begun wondering if Arrieta could be the next “ace” for the Chicago Cubs, which illustrates both the knee-jerk hyperbolic nature of our sports media and just how stellar the right-hander has been over the past couple months. It appears the Cubs may reap significant dividends from this deal, though, given his recent dominant performance. The change-of-scenery deal is a gamble that many organizations have made over the years it doesn’t always pay off. The Cubs, however, saw Arrieta’s natural ability and wagered they could fix him. In 358 innings with Baltimore, he had a 5.46 ERA and was walking 15.3 percent of the batters he faced in 2013 before the trade. Arrieta was a former top prospect, but he had acquired the dreaded “bust” label after struggling for his first four seasons in the big leagues. I also reached out to a couple of other BP writers to help shed some light on Arrieta’s recent performance, offering multiple distinct perspectives on what’s happening on the North Side of Chicago.Īlmost exactly a year ago, the Chicago Cubs acquired right-hander Jake Arrieta in a deal that sent veteran Scott Feldman and Steve Clevenger to the Baltimore Orioles. Good news: That’s what we attempt to determine in this space every week. It’s a number that has increased dramatically in the past couple weeks, and owners have begun to ask whether Arrieta is someone to simply plug-and-play while he’s scorching hot, or if this breakout is something more permanent. Fantasy owners have taken notice, too, as the 28-year-old hurler is now owned in 83.5 percent of ESPN leagues (as of Monday evening). He’s gone four consecutive starts in which he’s thrown at least seven innings and struck out nine. Through 39 2/3 innings in the month of June, Arrieta compiled a 0.92 ERA with 48 strikeouts and only six walks. He wasn’t talked about enough in fantasy circles, but after flirting with no-hitters in back-to-back outings, he’s on the tip of every fantasy owner’s tongue. Quite simply, it’s because right-hander Jake Arrieta laid waste to Major League Baseball last month. ![]() Y’all brought interesting names to the table in the comments section last week, and while I normally choose an individual player on whom to focus based upon your suggestions, I felt the need to go off the board. ![]() Click here for more information on Baseball Prospectus subscriptions or use the buttons to the right to subscribe and get instant access to the best baseball content on the web.Īlready a subscriber? Click here and use the blue login bar to log in. Not a subscriber? Get exclusive content like this delivered hot to your inbox every weekday. Contact Author the archives are now free.Īll Baseball Prospectus Premium and Fantasy articles more than a year old are now free as a thank you to the entire Internet for making our work possible.
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