Arrieta Improves To 6-0 As Cubs Top Pirates 7-1
PITTSBURGH (AP) - Jake Arrieta dominated the Pittsburgh Pirates yet again, scattering two hits in seven shutout innings as the Chicago Cubs defeated the Bucs 7-1 on Tuesday night.
Seven months after shutting the Pirates down in the NL wild card playoff, Arrieta allowed only singles to Sean Rodriguez in the second and Francisco Cervelli in the seventh. Arrieta (6-0) struck out five and walked two while lowering his ERA to 0.84. He became the second six-game winner in the major leagues after Chris Sale of the Chicago White Sox.
Kris Bryant had three hits for the Cubs, who have won seven of eight and moved five games ahead of Pittsburgh in the NL Central.
Jon Niese (3-1) gave up six runs and nine hits over five innings while losing for the first time since the Pirates acquired him from the New York Mets in an offseason trade.
Two starts removed from his second career no-hitter, Arrieta kept on going. His only real trouble spot came in the first, when he issued consecutive walks to John Jaso and Andrew McCutchen. A strikeout, a fielder's choice and a harmless grounder back to the mound later, Arrieta haf his bearings. The Pirates could do little to stop him even with manager Clint Hurdle using an unorthodox lineup.
Pittsburgh didn't get a runner to second the rest of the night against Arrieta. The Cubs have won each of Arrieta's last 19 starts. He became the first Chicago pitcher to win each of his first six starts in a season since Mordecai Brown won his first 11 starts in 1908, which is also the last time the Cubs won the World Series.
Pittsburgh wants to be in the mix with Chicago and St. Louis, but the first series of what is becoming a hotly contested rivalry has been decidedly one-sided. The Cubs have outscored the Pirates 14-3 in the first two games.
This one lacked the vitriol that accompanied Chicago's 7-2 romp on Monday night when Cubs manager Joe Maddon traded words with Pirates players. Chicago was too busy getting to Niese, obtained for popular second baseman Neil Walker.
Niese has benefited from the second-best run support in the NL, one of the reasons he came in undefeated. The Cubs, however, wasted little time taking control. Chicago jumped in front 2-0 in the second on a run-scoring groundout by Javier Baez and an RBI single by Arrieta. The Cubs tagged Niese for four more runs in the fourth as Niese struggled with his command. Addison Russel scored on a wild pitch, Jorge Soler and Bryant followed with RBI singles and Rizzo smacked a run-scoring double as Niese's ERA rose to 5.84.
That was more than enough offense for Arrieta, who left after 99 pitches and his winning streak firmly intact.
Rodriguez scored Pittsburgh's only run in the eighth on Jaso's single.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Cubs: placed OF Matt Szczur on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right hamstring and brought up OF Ryan Kalish from Triple-A Iowa. Szczur injured the hamstring during a run down between third and home in the fifth inning on Monday night. Kalish hit .368 in 70 plate appearances at Triple-A. The Cubs also transferred INF Christian Villanueva to the 60-day DL.
UP NEXT
Chicago will look for the sweep when Jon Lester (2-1, 1.83) faces Pittsburgh's Juan Nicasio (3-2, 3.33.) Lester is 2-2 with a 1.86 ERA in four starts against the Pirates. Nicasio is coming off seven shutout innings against Cincinnati last Friday.
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