Back in February, the Cubs brought back Jake Arrieta on a one year deal with the hopes he still had enough in the tank to help bolster the rotation for one last go around. To say it did not go well is putting it mildly and yesterday, the Cubs put Arrieta and their fans out of their misery, placing him on unconditional release waivers.
Including last night’s start, where he gave up 8 hits and 7 runs in the first inning against the Brewers, Arrieta’s 6.88 ERA will go down as the highest in Cubs history for a season with at least 20 starts. Following the game, he scolded a reporter in the Zoom press conference who was in the Wrigley Field press box for wearing a mask.
When the Cubs signed Arrieta, I said:
Hopefully Cub fans have realistic expectations for Arrieta in 2021. If they expect Arrieta to be a leader in the team’s attempts to repeat as division champions, they are likely to be disappointed and that disappointment may tarnish their memories of Arrieta and what he accomplished from 2014-2017. If they see this as the nostalgia-based move it likely is, and accept the neither Arrieta nor the team will see the same success that they’ve become accustomed to, then it could be a nice distraction to take away from what looks to be a rebuilding (or reloading, at best) year.
Turns out even realistic expectations were too much to ask for. The Arrieta signing completely bombed, and may have even ended his career. Something to keep in mind for the future as fans demand that the recently traded Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, and/or Kris Bryant be re-signed this winter.