Jake Arrieta

Jacob Joseph Arrieta (born March 6, 1986) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles, Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies, and San Diego Padres.

Arrieta played college baseball at Weatherford Junior College and at Texas Christian University (TCU). He was an All-American and was named Mountain West Conference Pitcher of the Year at TCU. The Orioles selected Arrieta in the fifth round of the 2007 MLB draft, and he signed a then record contract for a fifth round draft pick. He pitched for the United States national baseball team at the 2008 Summer Olympics, winning the bronze medal.

Arrieta made his big league debut for the Orioles in 2010, and after four seasons he was traded to the Cubs in 2013. In 2015, he led MLB in wins with 22, pitched a no-hitter, and won the 2015 National League Cy Young Award. In 2016, he was an NL All Star, threw his second no-hitter, received a Silver Slugger Award, and won a World Series with the Cubs.

Prior to the start of the 2018 season, Arrieta signed a three-year, $75 million contract with the Phillies. In August 2019, it was announced that he would have season-ending surgery to remove a bone spur in his pitching elbow. He returned to the starting rotation with the Phillies for the shortened 2020 season. In 2021, he returned to the Cubs, but was released partway through the season before signing with the San Diego Padres. Arrieta announced his retirement from professional baseball after the 2021 season.

Arrieta was born in Farmington, Missouri, to Lou and Lynda Arrieta. They moved to Texas four months after Arrieta was born, and he grew up in Plano, Texas, where he attended Plano East Senior High School. He was 6–1 with a 1.61 ERA as a junior, and 5–4 with a 1.30 ERA as a senior. As a high school senior he was selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the 31st round of the 2004 draft, but instead he chose to attend college.

Arrieta attended Weatherford Junior College for his freshman year in 2005, posting a 6–2 win–loss record with a 3.43 ERA. Following his freshman year, he was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 26th round of the 2005 Major League Baseball draft.

Instead, he opted to transfer to Texas Christian University (TCU), where he played for the TCU Horned Frogs baseball team for his sophomore and junior seasons, and studied sport psychology. During the summer of 2005, prior to enrolling at TCU, Arrieta participated in summer collegiate baseball with the McKinney Marshalls of the Texas Collegiate League, and posted a 4–3 record in 10 starts with a 1.87 ERA over 62+2⁄3 innings pitched. During his sophomore year in 2006, he led college baseball with 14 wins and had a 2.35 ERA over 19 appearances, and he had 111 strikeouts in 111 innings. He won the Mountain West Conference Pitcher of the Year Award and was named a Second-Team College Baseball All-American after his sophomore year.

In 2007, his junior year, he was 9–3 with a 3.01 ERA. He was named First-team All-Mountain West in 2007.