Arrieta details his formula for success
When Jake Arrieta first returned to the Cubs in the spring, he confidently stated he could still be the pitcher he was in 2015 and '16.
Time will tell. After recording a quality start in his official Wrigley Field return Saturday, Arrieta talked about what needs to happen for him to reach peak level.
"If the timing and the arm slot are there, everything plays up a notch," he said. "It's the late break on the curveball, it's the hard movement down and in to the lefties with the cutter and it's the late life on the changeup.
"I don't think one thing in particular is head and shoulders above everything else. It's kind of a combination of everything. The action on all of my pitches when my arm slot is right and the timing is right, the action is incredible."
It will be tough for Arrieta, 35, to match his Cy Young season of 2015, when he went 22-6 with a 1.77 ERA. His ERA has been slowly rising since then, but he felt injuries contributed to the 4.64 and 5.08 he posted in his last two years with the Phillies.
Arrieta also thought the wind blowing out Saturday was a benefit.
"I'm comfortable pitching in this ballpark even with the wind blowing out and it kind of plays in my favor," he said. "The opposing lineup tends to look at the flags and see the wind is blowing out and they account for that and try to do damage, and my job is to execute down in the strike zone with my movement and use their aggressiveness against them. I think that worked out today."
Twitter: @McGrawDHBulls