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Jake Arrieta’s latest win tied some MLB history
Thursday’s Say Hey, Baseball includes Jake Arrieta tying an MLB record, Nomar Mazara’s monster homer, and Bill Lee’s inconvenient campaign for governor.
Photo by Scott Kane/Getty Images
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Given you're reading a daily baseball newsletter, we're going to guess you've noticed that Jake Arrieta is pitching pretty well lately. Not only that, but the Cubs are a pretty good team. Add those two understated facts together, and you've got 23 straight victories for the Cubs in games that Arrieta has started, dating back to July 30 of last year. That ties the record set in 2012 by Kris Medlen, then with the Braves, meaning a win for Chicago in Arrieta's next start will give you a new answer to a trivia question.
Obviously Arrieta has had some help from the Cubs in this streak, but he hasn’t needed any for most of it. Over those 23 starts, he’s averaged seven innings per outing, struck out a batter per inning, and posted a 1.05 ERA. Sure, it’s not quite Kershawian in nature -- this is 23 absurd starts in a row, not four years’ worth -- but we can still be very impressed by all of it. You’re allowed to appreciate two things at the same time, you know. It’s the only way we survive in this world with both Mike Trout and Bryce Harper.
Coincidentally, Arrieta’s next start will come next week against the Dodgers, who to this point have featured a bottom-third offensive attack. They’re currently tied with the rebuilding Brewers and adjusted-for-Coors Rockies in team OPS+ at a well below-average 91. So, this has all the makings of a record 24th-straight win for the Cubs in Arrieta’s starts, but also this is baseball, so it’s simultaneously a great bet that the streak ends in his next appearance, because why wouldn’t it?
- Shaming fandom is something no one should do, but at the same time, this guy is wearing both Cubs' and Cardinals' gear, and should be paraded through the streets Cersei-style by MLB's High Sparrow. Is that Joe Torre's job? I'm unclear on the specifics of his duties.
- If you don't know Nomar Mazara's name, learn it, and also watch him crush this ball almost 500 feet.
- The Twins are unquestionably the saddest team in baseball. The Braves are bad on purpose -- the Twins thought they were going to be good, and the reasons why only make the current club sadder.
- David Roth would like you to guess if these names are the names of actual draft prospects, or ones he made up.
- Former MLB pitcher Bill "Spaceman" Lee is running for governor of Vermont, and his platform includes dissolving the border between Vermont and Quebec to make for easier travel and trade between the two places. He might quit his campaign, though, because he's tired of answering the phone.
- The 2016 Red Sox are powered heavily by their 2011 draft class, which featured Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley, Blake Swihart, Travis Shaw, and Matt Barnes, among others.
- It's too early for the Tigers to be out of the race, which means it's just about time that they stop ignoring Anibal Sanchez's issues.
- Will Leitch tried to get into the mind of the people who are furious with Matt Harvey for failing to show up to his postgame press conference.
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