Veteran starting pitcher Jake Arrieta has decided that it’s time for him to focus on other things in life.
Last night, the former Chicago Cubs right-hander and ace announced that he would be retiring from the game of baseball.
Arrieta walks away from the game with a career WAR of 22.8.
Over 12 big-league seasons, Arrieta complied a record of 115-93 and pieced together a 3.98 career ERA.
He won the National League Cy Young Award in 2015 and was a key contributor to the Cubs’ turnaround from cellar dwellers to World Series champions in 2016.
He was also a Silver Slugger and an All-Star.
“Well, I haven’t signed the papers, man, but I’m done”, Arrieta said on Pardon My Take. “It’s time for me to step away from the game.”
Calling It A Career
Overall, it’s safe to say that Arrieta had a solid career.
The Texas Christian University product was drafted in the fifth round of the 2007 MLB Draft.
He had previously been drafted in 2004 by the Cincinnati Reds out of Plano East High School and in 2005 by the Milwaukee Brewers out of Weatherford College.
He made his big-league debut in 2010 with the Baltimore Orioles and pitched the first four seasons of his career there.
His peak years were his years with the Cubs.
Over parts of six seasons with Chicago, Arrieta posted a 73-42 record with a respectable 3.14 ERA.
One of many great moments was the no-hitter he threw against the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2015 as he rose from obscurity to become an ace.
Following his tenure with the Cubs, Arrieta spent three seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies.
He would return to the Cubs in 2021 before being released and picked up by the San Diego Padres, where he would finish his career.
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