CHICAGO -- Over the course of a calendar year, Chicago Cubs starter Jake Arrieta underwent an amazing transformation. Like Nick Bottom from "A Midsummer Night's Dream" he enjoyed a magical night -- a series of them -- then suddenly woke in the forest, returned to the land of the mortals. Was any of it real?
Admittedly, that's laying it on a bit thick. But that's what numbers like Arrieta put up can do to a sports writer. From June 4, 2015 until May 16 of this season, Arrieta went 27-2 over 33 starts with a 1.