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CHICAGO -- Each start was remarkably similar. That smooth, efficient motion. The devastating array of pitches. The easy cool that quickly spreads to his teammates, who are so confident when he takes the mound. A year after a disappointing departure from Baltimore, Jake Arrieta is thriving in Chicago. The 6-foot-4 right-hander is unbeaten in his last eight starts after beginning the season on the disabled list due to shoulder tightness, providing a glimmer of hope as the lowly Cubs stumbled to last place in the NL Central at the All-Star break. "Jake knows it now, hes our new horse and thats what we want," first baseman Anthony Rizzo said. "We want him to be that ace and just keep getting all the confidence in the world because hes pitching very confident right now and its been fun to watch." Arrietas undefeated stretch began with one of his shortest outings of the season, when he lasted just 4 2-3 innings on June 3 against the New York Mets. He gave up seven hits and walked three, but he allowed just one first-inning run in Chicagos 2-1 victory. Then he really put on a show. Arrieta pitched six shutout innings against Miami, and seven more against Philadelphia. He retired his first 18 batters in a victory over Cincinnati. He was so good against the Red Sox that the fans at Fenway Park saluted him with a loud ovation when he departed after Bostons first hit with two out in the eighth. Heading into Sundays start at Arizona, Arrieta is 4-0 with a 1.36 ERA and a .160 opponents batting average during his impressive six-week run. "Hes got a good slider and hes got a very deceptive way that he comes at you," Reds All-Star catcher Devin Mesoraco said. "Its really cross-bodied and its almost like hes throwing from behind you, so its a heck of an angle to try to hit the ball from, especially for a right-hander." Arrietas repertoire includes a fastball that sits in the low 90s, a big curveball and a circle changeup that he mixes in to prevent hitters from sitting on his fastball. But its that slider and his ability to use it as a cut fastball that has been particularly effective. "Its a cutter and a slider depending on what I want it to be," he said, before running through how he uses it in different situations. "Its one pitch, but I can throw it multiple different ways at different velocities." Arrieta was selected by the Orioles in the fifth round of the 2007 draft out of TCU. He made his major league debut three years later at age 24, and won 10 games the following season. He drew Baltimores opening-day start in 2012, and threw seven scoreless innings in a victory over Minnesota on the 20th anniversary of the opening of Camden Yards. It looked as if he could be a key contributor for the Orioles for years to come, but that was really the beginning of the end when it came to his time in Baltimore. Arrieta shuffled back and forth between Triple-A Norfolk and Baltimore before he was traded to Chicago last July. The contending Orioles also sent reliever Pedro Strop to the Cubs in return for pitcher Scott Feldman and catcher Steve Clevenger. "I was bombarded by information from 50 different sources, which is never beneficial to anybody, I dont care who you are," Arrieta said, reflecting on his departure from the Orioles. "You got four or five different sports psychologists trying to reach out to you, you got seven different coaches trying to implement some input, you know that never works. It just kind of made things go in the opposite direction." Arrieta credits the change of scenery and his experience in developing a successful routine as two big reasons for his recent success. He also has a solid relationship with pitching coach Chris Bosio, who has become quite the asset for the Cubs when it comes to turning around cheap reclamation projects. Next up for Arrieta is just building on his solid first part of the season. Chicago traded Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel to Oakland on July, making Arrietas starts even more important for the Cubs for the rest of the year. They believe he is up to the challenge of anchoring the staff. "I think when he goes out there on the hill, hes got a calmness about him," manager Rick Renteria said. "Hes got some poise and hopefully this is now a turning point, it continues to be a turning point for him in his career and he continues to move forward and hes able to take advantage of that great stuff hes got." Wholesale Shoes . When a game is in the balance, however, they still have the personnel and the experience to end up with the two points. Shoes From China . Kelli Stack and Alex Carpenter also scored for the Americans, who avoided a repeat of Finlands upset at the Four Nations Cup in Lake Placid, N.Y., in November. Finnish goalie Noora Raty made 58 saves in that one, but the three-time Olympian could stop just 40 of 43 U. http://www.cheapshoesgoodquality.com/. -- The NFL Players Association wants to determine if the Tampa Bay Buccaneers leaked information about quarterback Josh Freeman being in the NFLs substance abuse program. Wholesale Shoes China . Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist stood tall with 41 saves between the pipes, but it was defenceman Ryan McDonagh who got the first star of the game as he had a goal and an assist and now has two goals and four assists for six points in two games. Cheap Shoes Outlet . Here are some of the best from Week One and some to watch in Week Two: TOP PERFORMERS Anthony Allen, RB, Saskatchewan (176 YDS, 2 TD, 30 touches vs. Hamilton) - Powerfully-built back burst onto the scene in his CFL debut, after a couple of years in the NFL, playing 21 games with the Baltimore Ravens.BARCELONA, Spain -- An equalizer from Neymar saw Barcelona salvage a 1-1 draw at home to Atletico Madrid on Tuesday after a stunning opener by Diego Ribas in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal. Atleticos chances were dealt a major blow half an hour in when striker Diego Costa came off injured, while Barcelona had lost defender Gerard Pique to injury before that. But Diego Ribas, who replaced Costa, stunned the Camp Nou 56 minutes in with a powerful shot from about 25 metres (yards) that grazed the fingertips of goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto as it soared into the top corner. With Lionel Messi kept quiet by Atleticos well-organized defence, Neymar stepped up to curl the equalizer around goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois in the 71st. Courtois made a number of acrobatic stops after that to preserve the draw, including in the 85th when he tipped Messis free kick around the post. "They played a good game and they made it very hard for us to create chances," Barcelona midfielder Xavi Hernandez said. "We have to try and score in the return -- this was not a good result for us." Atletico, which leads Barcelona by a single point in the Spanish league, leaves with a valuable away goal before the return on April 9. In Tuesdays other quarterfinal first leg, defending champion Bayern Munich drew 1-1 at Manchester United. For the fourth time this season, neither team emerged victorious but Atletico returns to the Vicente Calderon buoyed by its performance after having lost its top player to a hamstring injury that could sideline him from the second leg. Pique has already been ruled out with a hairline fracture of his right hip. "This is a team of men, who play with heart and pride, who never give up," Atletico coach Diego Simeone said. "Im happy because we can compete with them. Im very happy because we are in this." While Piques exit hurt Barcelonas brittle defence, Dieggo Costas injury left the visitors without their leading scorer and scrambling for options off the bench with Raul Garcia suspended.dddddddddddd Diego Ribas was the lone option. Striker David Villa had Atleticos best scoring chances in the first half as the former Barcelona forward curled wide a clear opportunity from inside the area five minutes in -- before forcing Pinto into a diving stop just before halftime. Between those efforts, Barcelona dominated possession, with Diego Godins sliding block keeping Andres Iniestas effort out before Diego Costa pulled up clutching his right thigh. Atleticos physical play proved wearing for Barcelona, and pressured Pinto into errant goal kicks like the one that gave Villa his opening opportunity. Courtois was alert to a Messi header to keep it scoreless at the break, but Atletico regrouped and emerged for the restart to stun the hosts with Diego Ribas opener. Neymar and Messi failed to link up on a cross in the 65th, as Atleticos back four continued to make life difficult for the Spanish champions -- until Iniesta spotted Neymars run and the Brazil striker curled his shot around Courtois. Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino brought Alexis Sanchez on for Cesc Fabregas and shifted Neymar to the left side. The extra attacking player clearly helped as Iniesta threaded a perfect ball into the area for the Brazil striker to equalize. The goal lifted the Camp Nou crowd and turned the tables on Atletico. But Courtois settled his teams nerves by making a diving save to Iniestas long-range shot in the 73rd minute, before then stopping a late effort from Messi. "Its going to be such a hard game against a great opponent. Its going to be a very passionate game," Simeone said before calling on his players to seize the opportunity should Diego Costa not be available. "Its up to the team and the players to respond and make up for his (possible) absence." ' ' '