As much as we might root for Jake Arrieta to succeed – particularly when he was with the Cubs – it eventually becomes not-a-fluke when a guy is getting hammered. It was the case for Arrieta in his later Philadelphia years, and it has been the case for him this year. His pitches simply are not missing barrels, and he became the worst starting pitcher in baseball. So the Cubs let him go.
From there, the Padres – so desperate for a starting pitcher, any starting pitcher – signed Arrieta to a big league deal and immediately inserted him into the rotation. It seemed like an improvident decision, but hey, maybe they could help him tweak something, or a pennant race would raise him up? Who knows. Seemed PRETTY unlikely, but crazier things have happened.
Well, the debut today didn’t go well. It was all the same story as it was with the Cubs, with the Rockies notching hard contact after hard contact. Arrieta gave up seven hits in just 3.1 innings, together with a walk. It led to five earned runs, before he was pulled with what is reportedly another hamstring issue:
Jake Arrieta left his first start with the Padres with a mild left hamstring strain. Gave up 5 in 3.1.
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) August 18, 2021
I don’t know what happens from here. I don’t know why the Padres didn’t add an arm at the Trade Deadline. I don’t know why the Padres thought, realistically, this would go any differently for them than it did with the Cubs.
I still wish Arrieta well, I still appreciate his pre-2021 time with the Cubs. I just don’t know how he can stay in the league right now, though, without dramatic changes that I couldn’t pinpoint.