Jon Lester - Fantasy News & Updates
Jon Lester - Fantasy News & Updates
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Lester got off to a bumpy start, carrying a 5.65 ERA into June and dropping five of his first nine decisions. After that, though, he was one of the nastiest hurlers in the game, as he went 11-3 with a 2.35 ERA in 21 starts after June 1. Since winning the clinching game of the 2007 World Series at age 23, the hard-throwing southpaw has rounded into a bona fide staff ace. Owners can expect even better things from Lester in 2010.
Six days after taking a line drive off his right knee that left him writhing in pain on the mound at Yankee Stadium, Lester showed no lingering effects Thursday. The outing left him with his strongest overall numbers to date -- 15 wins, a 3.41 ERA and a career-best 1.23 WHIP and 225 strikeouts over 203 1/3 innings. All signs point to the left-hander taking the ball in Game 1 of the ALDS matchup against the Angels, which kicks off next week.
The session went so well that Lester left no doubt about his readiness to take the ball for his final tune-up before his first start of the postseason, which could very well be Game 1 in Anaheim on Oct. 8. "I felt fine," said Lester. "No problems. Just the normal long tossing and everything. Right around 55 pitches. Everything was good. I felt good this morning when I woke up and walking around and everything. But there's that question in your mind, 'OK, when I get on the mound, is it going to bug me?' And it didn't." Lester is 14-8 with a 3.52 ERA in 31 starts this season.
Despite the positive outlook, Lester noted he was still feeling the effects of getting cracked in the leg. "It still hurts, but it will be all right," Lester said. "It's not too swollen right now." Manager Terry Francona pledged to keep track of the lefty's progress, emphasizing that if Lester goes without a side session between starts, it would be due more to pitchers saving their arm at this time of year. Aside from icing the leg to keep the swelling to a minimum, it doesn't appear Lester or the Red Sox are too concerned about him missing his next start.
Lester crumpled to the ground for a couple of minutes before getting up and walking off with a noticeable limp. It was announced that the lefty starter has a contusion of the right quad and X-rays were negative. Lester departed after being tagged for five earned runs on eight hits and three walks over just 2 1/3 innings, his shortest start of the year. He's listed as day-to-day. Stay tuned.
Lester won his fourth consecutive outing and his fifth in six starts despite giving up double-digit hits for the third time in '09. In his favor during the winning streak is a dominating 28/7 K/BB ratio in 27 innings. He'll be in great position to win his fifth straight start on Sept. 24 if he can keep that ratio going against the Royals.
A stellar performance from Lester, who fanned five of seven batters during one stretch. He hasn’t taken a loss since July 19, a span of 10 starts in which time he’s gone 5-0 with a 2.26 ERA. Overall, the southpaw has fanned 211 in 188 2/3 innings, translating to a nasty 10.07 K/9 mark. Look for Lester to deliver another dominant showing when he takes the ball again Sept. 19 in Baltimore vs. an Orioles lineup he’s owned in 2009.
The game will be played as part of a Sunday doubleheader at noon and 5 p.m. ET. After a lengthy delay, the game finally was called at 9:50. Sunday's game will start from the beginning, meaning the Rays will lose the bases-loaded situation. No word yet on whether Friday's scheduled starters -- Jon Lester and James Shields -- will face one another Saturday or get pushed back to later dates.
Wakefield's back woes were evident during his Sept. 5 start, when he struggled to cover first base on a grounder to first in the sixth inning. The pain continued to linger, and Wakefield elected to skip Sunday's side session as a result. The team is tentatively looking at the Sept. 18-20 weekend for Wakefield's next start, which will likely begin a trend in which the veteran knuckleballer takes the mound once every 10 days the rest of the way. Jon Lester will be moved up to make the Sept. 11 start, scheduled against the Rays at Fenway Park.
Another dominant showing from Lester, who surrendered three earned runs or fewer for the seventh straight start. He’s posted a phenomenal 56/13 K/BB ratio over 36 2/3 innings of the nasty stretch. With the eight Ks Sunday, he became the first left-handed hurler in Red Sox history to surpass 200 strikeouts. Owners can expect more of the same when the flame-throwing lefty takes a stellar 204/57 K/BB ratio into his next start on Sept. 12 vs. the Rays.
The injury isn't expected to keep the left-hander from making his next start. "It's alright," said Lester. "Just a little precautionary thing. I don't want to push it, especially this time of the year. I would have liked to have gone a little deeper." With 196 punchouts, Lester surpassed Bruce Hurst (190 in 1987) for most by a southpaw in club history. Lester will look for his seventh straight quality start when he battles fellow lefty Mark Buehrle and the White Sox next time out.
Wakefield was excellent on Aug. 26 against the White Sox (7 IP, 1 ER, 6 H), but it's uncertain when he'll get to show off his stuff again. As a result of his expected absence, Jon Lester was will replace Wakefield on Sept. 1 instead of his planned outing on Sunday. The Red Sox haven't decided on a starter for Sunday.
Lester wound up with his first win in five tries following this effort. That isn't to say the left-hander hasn't been pitching well; he's limited opponents to one earned run in nine of his past 15 starts and allowed more than three earned runs only once over that span. On a roll as the season heads into its stretch run, Lester will look to boost his already strong numbers against the White Sox next time out.
Lester showed great poise Friday in recovering from an early two-run deficit, managing to mostly stifle the hard-hitting Rangers lineup over his next five frames. Dating back to May 31, Lester has been simply fantastic, racking up a 2.21 ERA and an eye-popping 114/28 K/BB ratio over 96 2/3 innings. The hard-throwing lefty is in line for what should be a terrific duel with Roy Halladay when he goes up against the Blue Jays his next time out on Aug. 20.
Lester, who's allowed just two earned runs in 13 innings over his last two starts, committed only one prominent error Sunday: giving up an Alex Rodriguez big fly. Other than that, he was brilliant as he induced 11 groundouts to go with the seven K's. He's a must-start Aug. 14 at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.
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