Cueto picked up his 12th win of the season Friday, surrendering four runs on seven hits over seven innings while striking out nine Diamondbacks.
Cueto had a rough first inning, but he settled down and looked like his usual dominant self the rest of the way. It's tough to criticize a pitcher with a 12-1 record and 2.57 ERA, but he is currently in his biggest "slump" of the season, failing to record a quality start in back-to-back outings for the first time in 2016. It is also worth noting that Cueto has historically been a better first-half pitcher (2.95 ERA) compared to his results post-All-Star Game (3.73 ERA). That being said, he is posting career-best marks in BB/9 (1.69), HR/9 (0.44) and FIP (2.76), so there are absolutely no signs of regression on the horizon.