Jake Arrieta sinks the White Sox; Schwarber shines in Futures Game

Well, the first-half of the 2015 campaign is officially in the books and the Chicago Cubs were able to finish with a win behind a strong outing by ace pitcher, Jake Arrieta who homered and hurled a complete game against Chicago White Sox during Sunday’s Crosstown Classic series finale at Wrigley Field.

Arrieta has proved to be the top arm in this starting rotation and could receive a little bit of help sometime later on this month if Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer are able to acquire another starting pitcher.

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He currently leads the Cubs in wins with 10 – which is also his career high – strikeouts with 123, and ERA with a 2.66 mark. Arrieta struck out nine batters while limiting the South Siders to just one earned run on two hits, but the Cubs have fallen even further behind the second-place Pittsburgh Pirates who are only 3.5 games behind the St. Louis Cardinals.

When Joe Maddon‘s boys get back to work on Friday, they’ll find themselves on the road in a three-game weekend series against the Atlanta Braves.

They’ll follow that up with a four-game set in Cincinnati which includes their second doubleheader of the season on Wednesday. The evening game is a makeup from April 25.

For now, the boys who were unable to make the 2015 N.L. All-Star roster will pull for rookie third baseman Kris Bryant and first baseman Anthony Rizzo. Both men, in case you missed it, were named reserves and have agreed to participate in this year’s Home Run Derby.

Speaking of All-Stars, prospect Kyle Schwarber represented the Cubs during the Futures Game that was held on Sunday and did not disappoint. He continued to swing a hot bat, proving that he has what it takes to be called up and remain on the Major League roster.

Schwarber led the USA to victory over the World Futures with a two out, two-run triple in the third inning which made it a 3-1 ball game. He would be named the MVP in front of his family and friends who were in attendance.

There’s a possibility that he gets called up once the rosters expand later on in the year and could become the primary catcher for this club as soon as next season.

Here’s more from around the league:

‘Chicago Cubs: Considering alternative trade options‘ – Cubbies Crib

‘Long Ball Haunts Diamondbacks Again In Loss To Mets‘ – Venom Strikes

‘San Francisco Giants outscore Phillies 4-2 on Sunday‘ – Around The Foghorn 

‘MLB Futures Game: Jose Berrios Pitches a Scoreless Inning‘ – Puckett’s Pond

‘Mariners News: Mixed Bag of M’s Prospects in Futures Game‘ – SoDo MoJo

Next: Arrieta Homers, Goes The Distance