JAKE ARRIETA

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Chicago Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta is in the midst of one of the most amazing stretches of any pitcher in MLB history.  People watch Arrieta pitch and are amazed at his success...but little do people know that Arrieta had to overcome adversity, a lack of success at times early in his career, and doubt from himself and others, in order to reach the heights that he pitches at right now.  In fact, Arrieta almost walked away from the game (excerpt from the SI article linked at the bottom):

“I’m thinking about not playing anymore after this season.”

—Jake Arrieta, 2013

Before he was Beast, before he had unstoppable stuff and confidence, Arrieta was so lost on a pitching mound that he shared with Brittany his recurring thoughts about quitting baseball. This was three seasons ago, after the Orioles demoted him to Triple A Norfolk just four appearances after making him their home opener starter. He languished there for two months, interrupted by one start with Baltimore in which he gave up 10 hits and five runs in fewer than five innings, swelling his ERA to an unsightly 7.23.

He was 27 years old. He looked at his newborn son, Cooper, and realized that he didn’t like what the misery of pitching was doing to him as a father and husband. He needed only a few more credits to complete his business marketing degree from TCU. He was good with people. He could go into business, maybe sales.

 An hour or so later the competitor inside Arrieta sounded an alarm: How crazy an idea is that—that you would stop playing this game you love?

But then the next time Triple A hitters smacked his pitches around the yard, Arrieta sank into the abyss of doubt again. Flight or fight, fight or flight. The waves kept washing over him. “Norfolk in general was O.K.,” says Brittany, who has known Jake since elementary school, “but I’m O.K. if we never [go] back.”

So what changed with Arrieta?  Take a few minutes to read the full article from Sports Illustrated, linked here because there are great lessons in the article for people of all ages and walks of life.