2:00pm: The Nationals officially announced that Lester has been reinstated from the injured list. The team optioned righty Steven Fuentes to open a spot on the 26-man roster and moved southpaw Luis Avilan to the 60-day injured list to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Avilan will miss the 2021 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
8:50am: Veteran left-hander Jon Lester will be activated from the injured list and make his 2021 debut (and Nationals debut) tonight against the Marlins, reports Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post. Corresponding roster moves are still being sorted out.
Lester, 37, signed a one-year deal worth $5MM to step into the Nats’ rotation this winter. His trajectory to their active roster has been impeded multiple times, however. The southpaw underwent surgery to remove his thyroid gland early in Spring Training after experiencing abnormal levels of fatigue and having that course of treatment recommended by multiple doctors. He then was one of several Nationals players to land on the Covid-19 list amid the team’s early-season outbreak.
A five-time All-Star and three-time World Series champion, Lester recently wrapped up a six-year, $155MM contract with the Cubs and will now suit up for the fourth team of an exceptional career. Unlike so many big-money free-agent contracts, Lester’s proved to be a worthwhile investment for the Cubs. His production waned in the final years of the deal, particularly in 2020, but he was every bit the ace they hoped he be early on. Lester carried a 3.33 ERA through the contract’s first four years, including a superlative 2.44 mark during 2016’s World Series-winning season. He finished second in NL Cy Young voting that year and was dominant in the playoffs, earning NLCS MVP honors along the way.
The Nationals know they’re not getting the same Lester, but they’ll hope that he can continue to serve as a workhorse rotation stabilizer, throwing competitive innings behind a high-priced and high-profile trio atop the rotation. That trio of Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin was expected to be the team’s strength in 2021, but instead their inconsistency has been one of the primary drivers of Washington’s struggles as a team.
Scherzer is sitting on a terrific 3.00 ERA and is still posting elite K/BB numbers, but it’s been an uneven road. He’s mixed in a pair of poor outings with three utterly dominant starts. The end results are solid, though, and he’s easily the least worrisome of the Nats’ top three.
Strasburg has thrown just 10 innings so far in 2021 and is currently on the 10-day injured list with a bout of inflammation in his right shoulder. There’s no clear timeline for his return, but he’s already past the 10-day minimum and a return does not appear to be on the immediate horizon.
Corbin has been the most troublesome of the team’s rotation triumvirate. He was lights-out against the Cardinals back on April 20, but his other three starts have been outright nightmares. The lefty was absolutely torched for 10 runs (nine earned) in two innings by the D-backs on April 15, and he’s yielded a combined 10 runs through 8 1/3 innings in his other two starts. Overall, Corbin is lugging a 10.47 ERA through 16 1/3 frames. His velocity has ticked up about a mile per hour in his two most recent outings, including that excellent start against the Cardinals (six shutout innings), so the Nats can only hope that he’s begun to turn the corner.
Given the ups and downs throughout the Washington rotation at the moment, there’s perhaps a bit more expectation placed on Lester’s shoulders than most would’ve expected heading into the season. Lester is no stranger to weighty expectations, of course, but he’ll be looking for a rebound of his own after logging a career-worst 5.16 ERA in 61 innings last season. He said during Spring Training that the improved energy levels he felt post-thyroidectomy were higher than he’d felt in years, which could be a source of some optimism regarding a bounceback effort in 2021.
Lestah! Hoping for continued success for the big guy.
Was certainly a helluva pitcher up to just a few years ago even.
In ’19 he was fringe average. & in ’20 he was downright poor.
I do not think this is a blip either.
2019 ERA = 4.46 FIP = 4.26
2020 ERA = 5.16 FIP = 5.14
Hard to argue he’s been unlucky. Harder still to forecast a bounce back. Nationals would probably be really happy if he could replicate his work in ’19. Don’t think I’d care to take that bet.
I think this year could be a bounce back, but not to earlier levels. No telling how long the thyroid issue was keeping him down. Guy’s been through a lot and he is super competitive on the mound. It would not surprise me to see him pitch to age 40 based on his talent and toughness. Back if the rotation though,
*of*
Good point on the thyroid condition, @whyhazee.
My business partner had that surgery a couple years ago. The two years (in particular the last one) leading up to it, he was pretty miserable/low energy/physically out of sorts.
Made a huge difference in his case.
It’s certainly a factor to consider in re Lester. He is – like all of us – a year older too, however. I still say: odds against.
Guess we’ll see, uh?
May he have all the chicken and beer he wants!!
Damn, big guy is right.
4th team, Steve. Brief cameo in Oakland when he was dealt for Yoenis Cespedes.
D’oh! Early-morning brain meltdown. How could I space on that deadline-deal chaos? Thanks.
I loved that deal from Boston’s perspective as I fully expected the team to re-sign Lester in the off season.
I was wrong on both fronts. Cespedes was a selfish headache those two months and then ownership underestimated the market. I hated Price but his arrival only came about because of the Lester mistake. The team won in 18 with Price a contributed so I can’t overall complain.
It also landed you guys Porcello. So overall that deal was a win for the Red Sox.
No guarantee Lester was going to come back if you kept him anyway.
Absolutely. DD was fortunate to unload Cespedes for Porcello when the entire league knew the Sox were then trying to deal him. I still remember visioning him with that cannon in RF only to learn he refused to play the position.
its gotta be Fuentes, no? transaction log shows he’s been on the 26 man for 10 days with no action.
Isn’t Lester coming off the illness list rather than the injured list? If so I think he may need a spot on the 40-man as well as the 26-man. Avilan to the 60-day would open a 40-man spot.
and there we go!
Their rotation sure looked good on paper
I expected Corbin to flame out early when he signed the contract. It’s funny. At the time, he was seen as a rising pitcher, yet he’s only 15months younger than Kershaw with no way near the history of success. He helped the Nats win a World Series. Just a hunch that the remainder of his contract won’t yield much value.
Same deal with Zack Wheeler.
They have half the innings that guys like Kershaw and Bumgarner have on their arms, though. I suppose that was part of the case for their rising status. Wheeler looks pretty good so far. And I’ll give Corbin a little more leash before calling it. But it doesn’t look great. Though I’d rather have that deal on my books vs. the one Stras has right now.
could they consider moving him to the pen to get him back on track.
BDJ!
Triumvirate
Good luck Lester. Thank you for your contributions to the Cubbies
Well alright! Hopefully the Marlins can get on base and have a track meet.
On a managerial note, not that I’m complaining, but other than career success, I’m wondering why the Nats chose to bring Lester back to have his first start against a team that specializes in Small Ball. Do they feel that Lester will keep the Marlins off the bases entirely?
To any gamblers out there, this would be a game to take some bets related to SBs by the Marlins.
Kyle Schwarber to the MOON!
Something’s gotta give with the Marlins. 25 games in and now 4 blown saves by 3 different guys.
Seriously doubt that Martinez was worried about starting Lester against the Marlins. Nor should he have been
Another doubter. I love it!
Gosh, please tell me Corbin didnt go out and pitch against the mighty Marlins. Really cant figure out why Rizzo even bothered to have the Nats play today. Was a forfeit called?
Oh.
Washington sweeps Marlins, who have the 2nd worst record in the NL. They go on to play Arizona.
Let’s hope and pray for the Dbacks pitching staff. Give them strength and courage to face this almighty juggernaut.
Enjoy it.