Cubs' Arrieta finishes strong with win
The Cubs like Jake Arrieta plenty for his pitching exploits.
He was good again Wednesday night, going 7 innings against the St. Louis Cardinals and giving up 1 unearned run and 2 hits as the Cubs ended their home season with a 3-1 victory, taking two of three from the Cardinals. Yadier Molina picked up the first hit against Arrieta with a leadoff single in the fifth.
But Arrieta flashed some skill with the bat, too. In the bottom of the fourth, he tripled to right-center field, scoring a pair of runs. He became the first Cubs pitcher since Chris Rusin on Aug. 21, 2012, to hit a triple.
"I try and put as much effort into the offensive side of the game as I can," he said. "We go out there pretty much every day and swing it and try and get a little comfort, as much as possible in the box. Try and put some good swings on it."
Arrieta finished his season 10-5 with a 2.53 ERA. He was something of a revelation after starting the season on the disabled list with a shoulder ailment and missing the first month. But after the July 4 trade of Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel to Oakland, Arrieta moved up to the No. 1 spot in the rotation.
He pitched like a true ace rather than just someone who moved up because of attrition.
"He's our ace," said manager Rick Renteria, whose team improved to 71-88. "He's been pitching pretty much like an ace, obviously. He's got that type of stuff. But he's been carrying us deep into ballgames.
"Typically, an ace has both those qualities: carrying you deep and having stuff. Today was a very strong outing, being his last start. Everybody's very proud of him, and everybody's looking forward to the coming season."
Arrieta struck out 10, giving him four double-digit strikeout games this season.
Big day in South Bend:
Cubs president Theo Epstein will be in South Bend, Indiana, Thursday morning along with scouting and player-development chief Jason McLeod for a news conference officially announcing the Cubs' new Midwest League affiliation.
The South Bend Silver Hawks are expected to change their name to Cubs, and they're doing an extensive renovation of their ballpark.
The Cubs last week ended their two-year agreement with the Kane County Cougars, who on Wednesday announced a new affiliation with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Attendance watch:
Wednesday's announced crowd at Wrigley Field was 33,292. That brought the season's home total to 2,652,113, an increase of 9,431 over last year. The Cubs finished 41-40 at home after going 31-50 last year at Wrigley.