The five-time All-Star lefty Jon Lester won’t stick around to see the outcome of the ongoing MLB lockout. Lester announced on Wednesday that he is retiring from baseball, bowing out after 16 years in the majors.
In a chat with ESPN following the announcement, Lester said that he made the decision after realizing his body can’t respond to the challenges of playing in MLB anymore.
“It’s kind of run its course,” Lester told ESPN’s Jesse Rogers. “It’s getting harder for me physically. The little things that come up throughout the year turned into bigger things that hinder your performance.”
Lester spent the 2021 MLB season playing with Washington Nationals and St. Louis Cardinals. He made 28 starts combined and finished the year with a 7-6 record, 4.71 ERA, and 91 strikeouts.
Further explaining his decision, the 38-year-old said that he wanted to finish his storied career on his own terms.
“I want to be able to hand my jersey over and say, ‘Thank you, it’s been fun.’ That’s probably the biggest deciding factor,” he added.
Jon Lester is best known for his tenures with the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs. He played with the Red Sox between 2006 and 2014, helping the franchise win two World Series and making three All-Star selections. He added one more World Series trophy and two All-Star honors in the Cubs’ uniform while also winning the NLCS MVP award in 2016.
Lester ends his career with a 200–117 record, 3.66 ERA, and 2,488 in 451 MLB starts.
