TCU ex Jake Arrieta staking claim to another Cy Young for Cubs

Reigning National League Cy Young winner Jake Arrieta is heating up again.

Truth be told, the Chicago Cubs’ ace and former TCU star and Plano East ex never really cooled off that much. But after taking the loss in three of his five July starts (the Cubs lost all five games) and looking uncharacteristically mortal in the process, Arrieta has dialed it up a notch in August.

He’s won his past four starts, including a two-hit gem against the Padres on Tuesday in which he left after eight scoreless innings. Arrieta wanted to finish the game, but manager Joe Maddon reminded him of the big picture, according to the Chicago Tribune.

“I was mad at Joe [for] taking me out,” Arrieta said. “But at the same time, he came over to me and said ‘remember last year. Let’s conserve some things for October, the end of September.’ That’s our game plan.”

“Could I finish the game?” Arrieta said. “Yes. Does it play in our favor to maybe conserve that for later? Yes.”

With another strong August, Arrieta (16-5) is laying claim to consecutive Cy Young awards. He won it a year ago after the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw won it in 2013 and ’14. Arrieta became the first 16-game winner in the NL and is fourth in ERA (2.62), and is fifth in innings pitched (161  2/3 ).

“The only thing that’s been amiss is command issues on occasion,” Maddon told the Tribune. “Otherwise, his stuff is the same. His numbers are fabulous. It’s hard to replicate what he did last year. He just nailed it. If he gets hot over these past couple weeks, you can see more of what you just saw tonight.”

Since the start of August 2015, Arrieta is 27-5 in 37 starts with a 1.84 ERA.

Hometown notables

▪ Left-hander Tyler Alexander (Southlake Carroll, TCU) allowed a run on two hits and no walks and struck out five in six innings in his fourth Double A start with the Tigers’ Erie SeaWolves. Since allowing five earned runs in his first Double A start, Alexander has allowed four runs combined in his past three (18 combined innings).

▪ Mets right-hander Noah Syndergaard (Mansfield Legacy) pitched a two-hit shutout over eight innings in his last start Aug. 21 against the Giants. He struck out six, walked two and improved to 11-7 with the win.

▪ Infielder Taylor Featherston (TCU) was optioned back to Triple A Lehigh after 19 games with the Phillies. Featherston hit .115 with one RBI and one extra-base hit while in the majors. It was a double in his last game Aug. 18 before the demotion.

▪ Right-hander Drew Smith (Crowley, Dallas Baptist) struck out five in 2 1/3 scoreless innings of relief Thursday for the the Tigers’ Class A West Michigan Whitecaps. He walked none and allowed one hit.

▪ Marlins right-hander Andrew Cashner (TCU) has allowed two runs combined in his past two starts (11 combined innings) but Miami lost both games.

▪ Left-hander Matt Purke (TCU) has allowed just one run in six August appearances for the White Sox’s Triple A Charlotte Knights. In 9 2/3 innings, he’s struck out 12, walked four and allowed four hits.

▪ Right-hander Matt Walker (Aledo, Weatherford College) surrendered his first earned run Thursday in nearly two months for the Mariners’ Class A Clinton (Iowa) Lumberkings. He hadn’t allowed an earned run in his previous 18 appearances (18 2/3 innings) dating to June 30.

This story was originally published August 27, 2016 at 3:53 PM with the headline "TCU ex Jake Arrieta staking claim to another Cy Young for Cubs."