Seth Udinski, FISM News
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Jon Lester, a long-time Major League Baseball pitcher for the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs, is retiring from the game after a 16-year career.
NEWS at ESPN: 3-time World Series champion Jon Lester is retiring. I spoke with him and others in his orbit.
Dustin Pedroia: “Anytime he had the ball in a big game, you were going in for an 80-minute massage. You were in good hands.”
Story here: https://t.co/4gQlF56G6g— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) January 12, 2022
Lester was one of the most dominant pitchers in the 21st century. He was one of the key pieces on three World Series winners – twice with the Boston Red Sox (2007 and 2013), and once with the Chicago Cubs (2016). Lester helped break the Cubs’ 108-year World Series drought. He was a key piece on the team that defeated the Cleveland Indians, even pitching in relief in the decisive game 7. He won 200 games in his career and was voted to five All-Star games. Additionally, he achieved a glistening 2.51 ERA in the postseason during his career.
David Ross, who both played with and coached Lester, said of the tall and fiery ace upon his retirement,
If you’re building a baseball player, as far as how they treat other people, what their goals are, how you want them to compete and act on and off the field, he’s the model.
The 38-year-old Lester seems to understand that his time has come. He said,
It’s kind of run its course. It’s getting harder for me physically. The little things that come up throughout the year turned into bigger things that hinder your performance. 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.