Game Sixteen – Cubs 16, Reds 0
WP – Jake Arrieta (4-0) LP – Brandon Finnegan (1-1) Save – None
Jake Arrieta made history for the second time in his career. Arrieta no hit the Reds on Thursday night at Great American Ball Park with another incredible performance.
Jake Arrieta has two no hitters in his last 11 regular season starts.
As his teammates were busy lighting up the scoreboard at Great American Ball Park, Arrieta was taking care of business on the mound. Arrieta methodically shut down the Reds for nine spectacular innings. Arrieta kept the Reds off balance and did not allow any hard contact throughout his outing.
Jake Arrieta walked four and struck out six batters on 119 pitches, 71 for strikes, and faced only two over the minimum.
And Arrieta contributed at the plate, 2-for-4 with a walk and a run scored.
David Ross caught the first no-hitter of his career Thursday. Ross had one of the best games of his big league career. Ross not only called Arrieta’s second no-no, he was 2-for-4 and hit his first home run of the season.
Jake Arrieta’s second no-hitter overshadowed just a tremendous performance by the Cubs offense.
The Cubs scored 16 runs on 18 hits, smacked five home runs and the only player in the starting lineup without a hit might have had the best at-bats of the night. Addison Russell was a very loud 0-for-6 with a strikeout Thursday.
Kris Bryant (4-for-6 with two home runs, four runs scored and six RBI) hit not one but two home runs Thursday, the second a Grand Slam in the seventh inning. Bryant drove in six runs and finished the night with four hits and four runs scored. Bryant gave the Cubs a 2-0 lead in the first inning with a mammoth shot to the upper deck beyond the left field wall.
Ben Zobrist (3-for-5 with a home run, a double, a walk, a run scored and three RBI) hit his first homer in the second inning. David Ross and Anthony Rizzo (1-for-6 with a home run, two runs scored and three RBI) went deep in the sixth. Rizzo’s was a three-run shot that gave the Cubs a 9-0 lead.
Kris Bryant stepped to the plate with the bases loaded in the seventh and launched his third career Grand Slam over the center field wall.
The Cubs scored three more times in the top of the ninth. Matt Szczur (1-for-1 with a RBI) drove in Jason Heyward (2-for-4 with two walks and two runs scored) with a bases loaded single to right. And Ben Zobrist capped the scoring with a two-run double.
Jake Arrieta took the hill for the ninth with his team up 16-0. Arrieta issued a walk to Scott Schebler. Tucker Barnhart popped out to short and Zack Cozart lined out to Dexter Fowler. Eugenio Suarez flied out to Heyward in right … the 27th out and another piece of history for Arrieta.
With Thursday’s win, the Cubs improved to 12-4 on the young season.
Jon Lester is scheduled to face Jon Moscot on Friday night (6:10pm CDT) at Great American Ball Park.