Arrieta sharp, but Cubs get blanked by Arizona
Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Jake Arrieta was on his game again Wednesday night, but former Cubs farmhand Zack Godley was his match in a 3-0 Arizona win at Wrigley Field.
Arrieta turned in yet another quality start by a Cubs starting pitcher since the all-star break. He yielded 1 earned run on 3 hits and 2 walks and struck out eight in a 95-pitch, 7-inning performance in front of 41,321 fans.
The right-hander's strong outing lowered the ERA of Cubs starting pitchers since the break from 2.70 to 2.04, but it wasn't enough to knock off the NL wild card-leading Diamondbacks (61-46).
Godley (5-4), who was shipped by the Cubs to Arizona in 2014 as part of the Miguel Montero trade, enjoyed a scoreless outing for the second time on the road trip. Coming off a July 27 win in which he held St. Louis scoreless for 7 innings on 4 hits, the right-hander blanked the Cubs for 6 innings on 3 hits and 2 walks and struck out 5.
Not bad considering the Cubs had erupted a night earlier for 16 runs on 17 hits and 5 home runs, all season highs, in a 16-4 victory.
"He has good stuff," said Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo, who went 0-for-3 with a walk. "The curveball, he was throwing it well and his cutter and his fastball. We just didn't string enough hits together to put more pressure on him than we could have."
Arrieta (10-8) cruised through the first 5 innings. He struck out Arizona cleanup hitter Paul Goldschmidt on a curveball to end the fourth on his 40th pitch. He then struck out the side in the fifth inning, though it took 16 pitches due to a Chris Ianetta walk.
Arrieta ran into his first real jam in the sixth when David Peralta singled with one out and A.J. Pollock reached on a throwing error by shortstop Addison Russell. After Pollock stole second, Jake Lamb, a left-handed hitter, chopped a 2-run double down the first-base line for a 2-0 lead.
"I think the sixth got a little extended there," Arrieta said. "I threw more pitches than I would have liked, but going 7 strong tonight was nice. Their guy was just a little bit better. He featured a nice cutter-sinker-curveball combination and kept us off balance. But we're still in a position to come out and win the series."
Lamb struck again in the eighth inning against new Cubs left-hander Justin Wilson, who made his debut following a Monday trade from Detroit. Lamb's opposite-field double to the left-field corner, which a sliding Kyle Schwarber was unable to cut off cleanly, allowed Peralta to score from first base for a 3-0 lead.
Three Arizona relievers - capped by Fernando Rodney, who earned his 23rd save - frustrated the Cubs for 3 hitless innings, culminating in Rodney's strikeout of Schwarber to end the game.
The Cubs maintained their 2½-game NL Central lead, however, thanks to St. Louis' 5-4 victory over second-place Milwaukee.
"You lose that game, I have no issues, man. I have zero issues," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. "We played well, they played well. They're good, too. Their pitcher was outstanding also and their bullpen was very good, so there's nothing to lament there. That was a good baseball game."
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