Arrieta flirts with no-no as Cubs beat Reds
Jake Arrieta had a no-hitter until the Reds' Brandon Phillips doubled with one out in the eighth inning Tuesday night, and the Cubs went on to beat Cincinnati 7-0 at Wrigley Field. Arrieta pitched all 9 innings for the Cubs' first complete game of the season. He gae up only the 1 hit while striking out a career-high 13.
Phillips hit a drive to deep left-center field. Cubs center fielder Matt Szczur made a diving attempt for the ball, but it got past him for a clean double. Arrieta, who began the season on the disabled list with a shoulder ailment, ran his record to 9-5. He became the No. 1 starting pitcher in the Cubs rotation after the July 4 traded that sent Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel to Oakland.
"It's pretty good all season long," Cubs manager Rick Renteria said of Arrieta before the game. "He's got really good stuff. He's got an electric arm. His pitches obviously have some pretty good life. This year, he's shown some resilience where an inning might start to open up a little bit, and he's been able to keep it calm and work through an inning and get himself out of jams. It's been something he's been able to sustain."
The Cubs scored the first run of the game in the third, when Arrieta led off with a double to left-center. He later scored on a forceout by Jorge Soler.
A 5-run sixth broke it open as the Cubs chased Reds starting pitcher Johnny Cueto, an 18-game winner. The key hit of the inning was Chris Coghlan's bases-loaded double with two outs. Soler hit a solo homer, his fifth of the season, in the eighth.
Arrieta has flirted with no-hitters earlier this season. On June 30 against the Reds at Wrigley Field, he didn't give up a hit until Billy Hamilton singled leading off the seventh inning.
In his next start, June 30 at Boston, Arrieta tossed hitless ball until the Red Sox' Stephen Drew singled with two outs in the eighth. He was removed from that game after that hit.
• Bruce Miles will have more on Arrieta's performance at dailyherald.com. Follow Bruce on Twitter @BruceMiles2112.