Arrieta: “I expect to beat everybody”

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I think the average MLB career now is just a few years. The quote that has always resonated with me is “We’re going to be former players a lot longer than we were current players.” It’s a constant reminder that I need to get the most out of my body and my ability that I possibly can in the window that I have, because if I’m lucky I’ll get to play 10 years.

The way that you present yourself on the mound is so tremendously important. That was one of the biggest takeaways for me as a young kid from Nolan Ryan, from Roger Clemens, from Randy Johnson. The look in their eyes that they had, whether they were a nice guy or not, they looked like they wanted to tear your head off when they took the mound. That’s the way I like to be. I expect to win, I expect to beat everybody I play. It’s kind of that quiet confidence that I have inside that I try to present to the opponent without getting too overboard. Because there are times when I seem composed but inside I’m losing my mind.

“ACE” is one of the acronyms I’ve used over the years. It stands for “Acting cures everything.” You weren’t promised to come to the ballpark and feel great on your start day. Basically, how can you put something on display to the opponent that gives the appearance of “OK, this guy is locked in today,” whether you are or not? That’s a big piece of the puzzle that I’ve learned how to utilize.

“GOYA” is another one: “Get off your ass.” Seeing that or having that nearby or written under my hat is just a reminder that nobody cares if you’re tired. Nobody cares if you’re a little sore, there’s work to be done. We are all going to have those times, regardless of sport, where things start to go sideways — that’s when your mental fortitude really comes into play. Can you minimize the damage? Can you get back on track before things get too out of hand?

I think the beard plays a slight factor to my presence on the mound. It’s kind of part of the persona now. Everyone in Chicago embraced it, so I got to keep it. I can’t ditch it now. I got rid of it in the offseason and I got some pretty intense reactions. I told them, “Don’t worry, give me two weeks and it’ll be back.”

I was going through some difficult times at Triple-A Norfolk. I was going through failure at a high rate and questioning my ability. I questioned whether I was going to continue to play. I was in a situation where I was basically as uncomfortable on a pitching rubber as I ever have been in my entire life. A lot of it is with good intention — coaches are trying to genuinely help players make adjustments to better themselves. But it was just something where I knew that I could be more consistent in my delivery if I just did it my way. Then when the trade happened [to the Cubs in 2013], that’s when things really turned around.

When I got traded over to the Cubs, I knew that I was coming to an organization where I was going to be able to be myself. Not worry about “is this guy going to want me to do something different?” So I hit the ground running. I knew I was going to be able to go back to a delivery that I was confident I could repeat, and it’s steadily gotten better …

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