Baltimore Orioles: Jake Arrieta and Pitchers that Got Away

Jun 8, 2014; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Jake Arrieta (49) pitches against the Miami Marlins in the first inning against the at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports

Jake Arrieta – Chicago Cubs

Of course we begin with the O’s former opening day pitcher who won the Cy Young Award in the National League this week. I can say that I am really pleased for the guy to have accomplished this, as he completely deserved it. After immediately flourishing in Chicago after the July 2013 trade, he went 10-5 in 2014 with a 2.53 ERA.

But 2015 was simply epic! With a 22-6 record and 1.77 ERA, that is the stuff of the best pitcher in the game — Bob Gibson sorts of numbers from another era. Arrieta had a 0.75 ERA in the second half of the season. Over his final 12 games this year, he was 11-0 with a 0.41 ERA!  That is amazing.

The return for Arrieta (and Pedro Strop) – Steve Clevenger and Scott Feldman.  We could include Strop in this article with his own category. After very good performance in 2012, he seemed to lose it in 2013 and was given up by the Birds. He too has (mostly) flourished in Chicago. Since going there, his record is just 6-12, but he has a 2.63 ERA in 164 innings. But get this: his WHIP in Chicago is 1.012. Yes, the Cubs are happy with the Orioles. But the O’s got Strop from Texas for Mike Gonzalez, who never did much and is apparently out of baseball at this point.

Scott Feldman was very mediocre for the Orioles, going 5-6 with a 4.27 ERA in 15 starts. Since then in Houston (where he went as a free agent) he has been 13-17 in 47 starts with a 3.80 ERA.

The stars seem to be finally aligning for Steve Clevenger in Baltimore. There is no doubt that he can hit, and it looks like he could be a big part of plans for 2016. It would take quite a season and beyond to put up numbers to equal out the trade of Arrieta.

Next: No surprise that this guy is really good ...