Cubs and Jake Arrieta will meet in 2021

Jake Arrieta had one of the best seasons in modern baseball history for the Cubs in 2015. He played one without hitting against the Dodgers that year, then another against the Reds in 2016.

After 2017, Jake left for the Phillies.

Now, he may be back to the Cubs rotation in 2021:

We have no more information than this at the moment. If that happens, and when Jake Marisnick’s signing is made official, two players will have to be removed from the 40-player roster.

I wrote that the Cubs should sign Arrieta here a month ago. In that article, I wrote:

But after a rather difficult start to its shortened 2020 season, its three early September was actually … not so bad. He posted 3.00 ERA and 1.444 WHIP in three games, averaging six entries per game (18 entries in total), with six walks and 14 eliminations. He was closed after a good game against the Mets on September 15, but not because of arm problems – he had a grade 1 thigh tendon injury (the less serious type).

I am well aware that Jake is not the pitcher he was with the Cubs in 2015 and 2016, or even with the 2017 model who posted 3.53 ERA and 1,218 WHIP in 30 games for the Cubs that year.

For Spring Training – whenever it happens – he must be healthy and I think he could give the Cubs a year similar to his 2017 season, or the 2018 season he had in Philadelphia. He posted 1.9 bWAR in 2017 and 2.8 in 2018 – he would be very useful for Cubs at that level of performance, not to mention the fact that his experience could be good for guiding younger pitchers in the Cubs organization.

I will keep this up (obviously, Spring Training IS happening, and soon). That would be a good sign, as well as being popular with fans. Obviously, they shouldn’t hire you because it would be popular.

But I think Jake can help with the rotation. This is a good sign.