Chicago Cubs starter Jake Arrieta has been unanimously voted the National League Pitcher of the Month for the month of April.
Arrieta posted a perfect 5-0 record in five April starts to lead the NL and tie for the Major League lead in wins. His 1.00 ERA (2 ER/36.0 IP) was the third-lowest among qualifying Major League pitchers last month, while ranking second in the NL. The Missouri native fanned 32 while allowing just 18 hits and walking 10 across his five outings.
Arrieta capped the month of April by tossing 5.0 innings of one-run ball to lead the Cubs to a 7-2 victory over the visiting Milwaukee Brewers. It was his shortest outing of the month, but the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner still managed to collect six strikeouts in the contest while giving up only three hits. The fifth straight victory came on the heels of his second career no-hitter on April 21st, in which he fanned six and walked four in a 16-0 decision at Cincinnati. Arrieta's no-no came just 10 starts after his first career no-hit performance on August 30, 2015 at Dodger Stadium. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, only Johnny Vander Meer (who had back-to-back no-hitters, June 11 and 15, 1938) and Hall of Famer Warren Spahn (who had five starts separate his two no-hitters on September 16, 1960 and April 28, 1961) have thrown two no-hitters in a shorter span. With the performance, Arrieta became the fourth reigning Cy Young Award winner to throw a no-hitter, joining Hall of Famers Sandy Koufax (1964) and Bob Gibson (1971), as well as Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (2014). The 30-year-old hurler is now the first pitcher to win NL Pitcher of the Month honors in three consecutive months, having also been voted Pitcher of the Month for August and September of last season. Overall, he is the third Major League pitcher to accomplish the feat, joining the American League's Pedro Martinez (April, May and June 1999) and Johan Santana (July, August and September 2004), both of whom went on to win the Cy Young Award for that season.
The National League Pitcher of the Month for April, Jake Arrieta, will receive a specially designed trophy, suitably engraved, to commemorate his performance.