Earlier this season, retiring Cubs catcher David Ross was asked how he would approach an at-bat against Jake Arrieta.
His book on the right-hander had nothing to do with baseball.
"Get in the box and pray, I think," said Ross, who caught Arrieta's no-hitter in April and has two hits, including a home run and four RBIs against him in four career at-bats.
"You're asking the wrong guy. You've got to battle. He's so deceptive. He even gets away with his mistakes because he's so deceptive. ... I don't know what I'd do.
The Indians will be faced with the same question Tuesday in Game 6 of the World Series at Progressive Field.
Arrieta held Cleveland hitters hitless through 5 1/3 innings of Game 2 until Jason Kipnis doubled during the Cubs' 5-1 victory. Arrieta's control eluded him early in that game, when he walked three, including two with two outs in the first inning.
But he bounced back to finish with six strikeouts and allowed one earned run.
"His command (was) a little bit scattered at times, but he battled through," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said.
The Cubs, who trail 3-2 in the series, once again will have their season on the line. And they're confident having last year's National League Cy Young Award winner on the mound will give them a fair chance to extend the series to seven games.
Arrieta, too, is confident. He spoke matter-of-factly before the Cubs' 3-2 victory in Game 5 on Sunday about pitching again this season, though he wasn't willing to reveal much more.
"I'm not really going to expose everything or the way I'm really going to attack those guys," he said. "I just want to execute with quality in and out of the strike zone, and try to get ahead in the count as early and as often as I can to open up some more options for myself."
And keep open the possibility of a Game 7 for the Cubs.
