Red Sox name Jon Lester opening-day starter
Lefty Jon Lester will be the Red Sox's opening-day starter when they take on the rival Yankees in the Bronx on Monday. MLB.com's Ian Browne reports Sox manager John Farrell made the announcement Wednesday morning.
Lester, 29, is coming off a disappointing season in which he posted a 4.82 ERA (90 ERA+) across 205 1/3 innings. While Lester's modest jump in his HR/fly-ball rate andBABIP should improve a bit, his declining K% is a concern moving forward.
For his career, Lester has pitched to a 3.76 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 2.47 K/BB ratio. For what it's worth, he owns an ERA of 4.10 in 22 career starts against the Yankees and an ERA of 4.19 in 11 career starts at (new) Yankee Stadium.
This will be Lester's third straight opening-day nod. The Yankees will counter with ace and fellow lefty CC Sabathia
- Jon Lester Announced as Red Sox Opening Day Starting Pitcher: Jon Lester will kick off the Red Sox’s 2013 seas... http://bit.ly/XeqvT6
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