Left-handed pitcher Jon Lester has announced his retirement after 16 years in MLB. Lester, who turned 38, finishes with a 200-117 record and a 3.66 ERA in 452 career games, including 451 starts. He also compiled a 2.51 ERA in 26 appearances in the postseason performer. Lester helped Boston win the championship in 2007 and 2013, and led the Chicago Cubs to the title in 2016. The championship for the Cubs was the franchise’s first since 1908.
Lester was selected by Boston in the second round of the 2002 amateur draft. The five-time All-Star broke into the majors with the Red Sox in 2006, going 7-2 with a 4.76 ERA in 15 starts. Lester’s first big league season was cut short when he was diagnosed with a rare form of lymphoma, undergoing chemotherapy and returning to the majors in July 2007. He helped the Red Sox to the AL East title by going 4-0 with a 4.57 ERA in 12 games down the stretch, and Lester delivered in the postseason by pitching 5 2/3 scoreless innings in Boston’s victory over Colorado in Game 4 of the World Series. Lester signed a $155 million, six-year contract with Chicago after the 2014 season.
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