 struck out four and retired the last seven batters he faced, leaving after 97 pitches with a 3-0 lead. He hasn't allowed more than two earned runs in any of his nine starts since the All-Star break, going 6-1 with a 1.59 ERA during that span.Before Tuesday, Arrieta had been 0-4 with a 7.29 ERA in his last six starts against the Pirates.John Jaso went 2 for 2 with a homer and reached in all four plate appearances for Pittsburgh.Wade Davis got the final three outs for his 27th save in 27 chances to establish a new Cubs record for consecutive saves opportunities converted. Ryan Dempster saved 26 in a row from 2005-06.Chad Kuhl (6-10) matched Arrieta through five innings but ran into trouble immediately in the sixth. His first pitch was a 95-mph fastball down the middle that Zobrist hit into the bleachers in right center.Kyle Schwarber followed with a walk and Rizzo doubled one out later. After Tommy LaStella was intentionally walked to load the bases, Avila singled to score Schwarber.Heyward stretched the lead to 3-0 with a sacrifice fly against reliever A. J. Schugel.Jaso's solo homer in the seventh off Koji Uehara made it 3-1.Rizzo gave the Cubs an insurance run in the eighth with his 200th career double.TRAINER'S ROOMPirates: RHP Joaquin Benoit (inflamed left knee) and LHP Wade LeBlanc (strained left quadriceps) each pitched a simulated game in the bullpen on Tuesday. ''It was a good effort by both guys out there,'' manager Clint Hurdle said. ''Physically, they seemed to be pretty on spot.'' Cubs: LHP Jon Lester (left lat tightness and shoulder fatigue) will throw a side session on Wednesday after tossing 47 pitches in a simulated game on Monday. No determination has been made when or if he'll make a minor league rehab start . SS Addison Russell (right foot strain) will continue his rehab stint with Triple-A Iowa on Wednesday after a planned day off on Tuesday.UP NEXTBoth Cubs lefty Jose Quintana (4-3, 4.50 ERA) and Pirates righty Ivan Nova (11-11, 3.97) will be looking to bounce back from rough outings in the series finale Wednesday night. Quintana allowed six runs in five innings Sunday against Philadelphia, while Nova allowed seven runs (five earned) in five innings Sunday against Cincinnati.---More baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball)
Pirates hope to cool Cubs' Arrieta 1h ago• 2 min read CHICAGO -- Jake Arrieta looks to extend his sensational second half run when he takes the mound for the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Wrigley Field.The Cubs took the opener of the three-game series 6-1 on Monday.Arrieta (13-8, 3.49 ERA) is 5-1 with a 1.78 ERA in his past eight starts. He has limited foes to a total of 10 earned runs in that span, allowing no more than two in any of the eight outings.It is the kind of performance that recalls Arrieta's 2015 Cy Young Award-winning season, when he went 22-6 with a 1.77 ERA in 33 starts."Mechanically, I've been pretty good and staying back, giving myself time and allowing myself to get on top of the baseball and drive it down through the strike zone," Arrieta said recently. "If I do that, it creates difficulty for the hitter with sink and being able to establish multiple breaking balls." Arrieta leads the Cubs in wins and is coming off an Aug. 24 no-decision in which the Cubs lost a lead and suffered a 4-2 setback at Cincinnati. He still allowed just one earned run over 5 2/3 innings in that game."I still have my best pitching ahead of me," he said. "A lot of guys are in the same boat from our arm standpoint. But certain guys in the lineup, there's room to improve, and we've picked it up lately. ... If we can pick it up, we're going to be in good shape." Arrieta is 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA in three starts against Pittsburgh this season. He has a career 9-5 record with a 3.18 ERA in 18 regular-season outings vs. the Pirates. He is 4-2 in eight starts against them at Wrigley Field.The Pirates counter with right-hander Chad Kuhl (6-9, 4.52 ERA).Kuhl is 4-3 with a 3.30 ERA in his past 11 starts. He took the loss in his last outing, a 5-2 setback to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday. Kuhl gave up two runs on six hits while walking five and striking out two over four innings."Firing off 94 pitches in four innings, it pretty much tells you that we're not making a lot of quality pitches," Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle said. "There were some nice sequences, but not enough of them." Kuhl is 0-3 with a 13.20 ERA in five career starts against the Cubs and 0-1 in two starts vs. Chicago in 2017. He made an emergency start for Jameson Taillon on July 9 at Wrigley Field on two days' rest, ending with no-decision after allowing one run over three innings pitched.He is among six starting pitchers the Pirates have employed this season, the fewest among any major league team. The club record for fewest starting pitchers is seven in 1902, 1972 and 1997.The three-game series concludes Pittsburgh's six-game road trip, which began with two wins in three games at Cincinnati. The Pirates return to PNC Park on Friday to open a three-game series with the Reds. The Cubs remain home to play the Atlanta Braves in a four-game series that opens Thursday.The teams meet for the final time this season from Sept. 4-7 at PNC Park.
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