(WEEI) All we know right now is that veteran left-hander Jon Lester made a lot of people happy over the weekend -- almost 5,000 to be exact.
But the act of buying beers for the city of Chicago could be viewed in two ways from Lester, who's now a free agent after playing for the Cubs for the past six seasons. It could be interpreted as a farewell or a thank you. Cubs manager David Ross made it clear that he's hoping it's the latter, as he explained during appearance on the Bradfo Sho podcast.
"They know my position," Ross said. " I definitely think there is more in the tank for Jon. That's Jed (Hoyer) and Theo (Epstein's) area. I try to tread lightly on that. They are really good and have a lot of experience. If they ask my opinion, I give it to them. I think Jon is going to have a really good year next year. I hope it's with us, but the business aspect of the game right now is so far out of my league with all that is happening and with COVID and all that. Those guys are dealing with budget stuff and roster construction. I was never a big fantasy football guy. This is much more than fantasy football. We talk and I have some input. Jed bounces things off me. I'll leave that to them. They know where I stand."
Beyond being beloved by Cubs fans, there's a sizable group of Red Sox fans who are hoping for a reunion with Lester as well. He played in Boston from 2006-'14 and the notion of returning is something Lester has expressed an openness to.
But determining the 36-year-old Lester's value is a big part of the equation. He had a 5.16 ERA and 1.33 WHIP in 12 starts in 2020.
Then there's also how Lester's overall stuff -- and velocity -- is holding up heading into his age-37 season.
Because of Lester's ability to serve as a powerful voice in any clubhouse and his reliability when it comes to taking the mound, Ross believes a normal offseason will result in Lester becoming a solid overall acquisition for a team. (For what it's worth, MLB Trade Rumors projects Lester to sign a one-year, $5-million deal with the Atlanta Braves.)
"If you look back, I don't want to give the world the scouting report on Jon, but he came into spring training and he had some velocity he hadn't had that early really since he had been in Chicago," Ross said. "He came in at a really good place. I think for a lot of people, especially veteran players, it was really tough to stay sharp during the quarantine time. You saw some of these guys who had great years and you saw some guys who just couldn't get it going. I think Jon was in the middle of that. He had some highs and lows. He had some really good spurts. I know it's in there but the velocity really never ticked back up to where I think he can get. Having an offseason and really reworking his program and downtime, I think you're going to see a really good Jon Lester next year."
