Thoughts on Jon Lester?

by High Heater on Apr 26, 2007 10:03 PM EDT

was a heralded prospect a year ago but showed bad command, had cancer now is back...

he's fairing pretty well in the minors so far showing better command then he previously had but its sample size.what do you guys think the Sox are gonna do with him?

he has 15K's in 13IP with 2BB's but its small sample size, he never really had good control and it looks like the Sox are loaded in the rotation now...

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Jesus man

You about gave me a heart attack - "had cancer now is back." My first read through had me thinking the cancer was back.

by slurve on Apr 26, 2007 10:13 PM EDT reply actions

heh

same with me.

puncuate better plz.

by god allah star on Apr 26, 2007 10:27 PM EDT up reply actions

Lester is gonna be a stud

Lots of pitchers struggle with their command in their first few starts.

Watching him last year, I liked what I saw. He tried to nibble around the corners too much. I think he's out to prove something this year.

Sox Rotation by 2009:

Beckett
Daisuke
Lester
Buchholz
Bowden

NICE

by odo31 on Apr 26, 2007 10:17 PM EDT reply actions

2009

wakefield will only be 42... in other words, just entering his prime. :)

by jpahk on Apr 26, 2007 10:24 PM EDT up reply actions

god dam right about that

by wildthang on Apr 26, 2007 10:49 PM EDT up reply actions

First off, I wouldn't put too much into his bad command at MLB level last year. First off, it was his first taste of MLB ball - and many young pitchers struggle with their command during their first try. Second off, he had cancer! When I watched him, his fastball was in the 89-90 range which is down from the 91-93 range he was supposedly throwing in '05. My guess is that he was nibbling more because he was scared his strikes were going to get hammered.

Second off, you definitely can't put much stock into his improved command at Low-A. He is pretty close to 100% so his stuff is overpowering for low-A hitters. Thus, he can just throw the ball right down the middle if he needs to.

In the end, I expect his walk rates to trend toward his 2005 numbers (3.5BB/9Inn - Not great not terrible). And I expect him to be an above average pitcher that should post some lofty win totals in front of the Boston lineup.

Gorkys Hernandez is my new favorite player (my tribute to VTTigers)

by Dfarth on Apr 26, 2007 10:54 PM EDT reply actions

Lester vs Garza

Who do you like better as a long term MLB pitcher? I have been thinking about this for a week or so now and am going back and forth.

by Robinson Checo on Apr 27, 2007 12:40 AM EDT reply actions

A tough question

I guess it depends on what you expect. I believe Garza has a bit better stuff but Lester's lefthandedness may make up for that. I suspect that Lester will end up with more wins in Boston but Garza may put up better peripherals. All-in-all I think they are similar in terms of ceiling - as I don't expect either to be a true ace - but they could both be solid #2's on playoff caliber teams. That's pretty good.

Gorkys Hernandez is my new favorite player (my tribute to VTTigers)

by Dfarth on Apr 27, 2007 12:16 PM EDT up reply actions