*Photo from NBC Sports*
The hallmark of lefty Jon Lester's career has been his consistency, and his willingness to give it all he's got every time he takes the mound. Now, he's walking off. Lester has announced his retirement after a 16 year MLB career, according to an announcement made by Jesse Rogers of ESPN, with Lester confirming the news.
Lester told ESPN that "I'd like to think I'm a halfway decent self-evaluator. I don't want someone else telling me I can't do this anymore. I want to be able to hand my jersey over and say, 'Thank you, it's been fun.' That's probably the biggest deciding factor."
He went out a winner too. Lester ends his career with exactly 200 wins in his 16 seasons, along with 3 world series rings, two of which were with the Boston Red Sox, and another one coming with the Chicago Cubs in 2016, helping snap their 108 year title drought. He finished in the top 4 of Cy Young voting 3 times, made 5 all star games, and was a Co-MVP of the 2016 NLCS with Javier Baez.
But of course, nothing showed Lester's perseverance and determination like his battle with cancer. He got the diagnosis of anaplastic large T-cell lymphoma in 2006, his rookie season. That forced him to miss the remainder of the 2006 season, and didn't return to the mound until July of 2007. His first game back was a win over the Cleveland Indians, who the Red Sox beat in the ALCS.
Talking about his cancer battle, Lester said "I was in Triple-A on a rehab assignment in Pawtucket after cancer. My parents were there and they were leaving that day or the next day to go home, and I told them they have to change their flight. I said I'm starting the next night in Cleveland. That's one of the top moments of my career. Seeing their faces was pretty cool. Once I got back to baseball, I tried not to take anything for granted and really appreciated being around the guys."
After the 2007 season ended in a world series title, Lester followed that up with a spectacular 2008 season. He finished with a 16-6 record, to go with a 3.21 ERA and 1.274 WHIP, throwing 210 1/3 innings in 33 starts, most memorably throwing a no hitter at Fenway Park against the Kansas City Royals.
He also had incredible consistency while he was on the mound. Lester won 15 or more games 8 times in his career, and threw 200 or more innings in 8 of those seasons as well. Furthermore, in 9 seasons with the Red Sox and 6 seasons with the Cubs, he finished with the same ERA, with a 3.64 mark in both cities.
Cubs manager David Ross said of Lester in September that "Being out there, being able to take the ball every fifth day, staying healthy. It allows you to continue to work through competition and adjust and find a way to win. He's been a winner his whole life, so there's no secret that he was going to figure out a way to have success."
Former Red Sox and Cubs executive Theo Epstein said of Lester that "We owe him a great debt of gratitude. We were investing in Jon Lester the person every bit as much as we were investing in Jon Lester the pitcher. And he came through in both areas for us in typical Jon Lester fashion."
Lester can hang his head high as he walks away from the game he loved. He accomplished almost everything you could ever ask for out of a player, being a fan favorite in two of the biggest baseball fanbases in the country in Boston and Chicago, and is a candidate for election to the hall of fame when his name appears on the ballot in 5 years time.
Comments
Post a Comment