Tuesday, October 24, 2017

Lester, Lackey, Lost


Cubs’ starting pitcher Jon Lester doesn’t get it.  Teammate John Lackey is most likely out the door into retirement, and all Lester can do is praise him.  “On the media side of things, those two guys [Lester and Josh Beckett, both teammates with Lester in Boston] are probably not well liked,” Lester said in the Tribune after the Dodgers eliminated the Cubs last week.  Gosh, why is that, Jon?

Yes, I know the media can ask stupid questions; you can catch one or two during news conferences.  But here’s the thing: reporters are there on my behalf.  And who am I, if only Lester would bother to ask.  A fan, that’s who.

Lester went on to talk about how Lakcey and Beckett knew how to treat “young guys the right way, teaching them the game.”  Speaking of himself, Lester admitted, “I may be an [@#!!], I may show my emotions too much, I may show up the umpire too many times, I may yell at hitters.  I don’t really care.  In this clubhouse with my guys and my team, that’s what drives me.”

How touching.  Now, let’s take away the fans who jam Wrigley Field and generate the TV ratings that make possible the revenue that allows Lester to sign his $155 million deal with the Cubs.  Does he mean to say he has no obligation to those people who make the difference between professional standing and a weekend beer league?

In that case, how sad.

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