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Jake Arrieta played a major role in helping the Chicago Cubs win their first World Series in 108 years— including a three-run bomb he hit off Madison Bumgarner in the NLDS— but after five seasons with the club, the pitcher has decided to take his talents to the Philadelphia Phillies after they offered him a three-year, $75 million contract. In hindsight, the writing might have been on the wall when he shaved off his signature beard in the offseason.
There’s no doubt the Cubs will miss his presence on the roster, and based on a letter he wrote to the city of Chicago, the Cy Young Award winner’s departure is bittersweet. He posted a heartfelt handwritten message thanking Theo Epstein and the Cubs front office, the Ricketts family, his fellow players, the people of Wrigleyville, and the team’s entire fanbase — a note that also revealed Arrieta might have a hidden talent.
🙏🏻🏆✌🏼 pic.twitter.com/vFGFQArISb
— Jake Arrieta (@JArrieta34) March 13, 2018
For the Win pointed out the exquisiteness of Arrieta’s penmanship, and it seems like he could make a solid living by operating an Etsy store writing thank you notes for other people or being the guy who gets paid to hold the pen in a zoomed in shot when a character in a biopic about a 19th century author writes an entry in his journal.
It must be really nice knowing he has something to fall back on if the whole “baseball” thing doesn’t end up working out. Something tells me he’ll probably be alright as far as finances are concerned, but it never hurts to have a backup plan.