The Boston Red Sox have put an offer on the table to free agent pitcher Jon Lester in hopes of reuniting with one of the top pitchers on the market this offseason.
Photo: Free Agent 3B Pablo Sandoval Meets With The Red Sox
According to ESPN, the Red Sox made Lester an offer when the team met with him earlier this week, but the terms haven't been revealed and the left-hander isn't expected to make a quick decision.
Lester met with the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday and the southpaw, a native of Georgia, is slated to meet with the Atlanta Braves on Thursday. Other teams in the mix for Lester include the Toronto Blue Jays and St. Louis Cardinals, while the New York Yankees could also conceivably join the fray.
Jon Lester To Meet With Atlanta Braves On Thursday
Lester, who turns 31 in January, rejected a four-year $70 million offer from Boston in mid-March and refused to re-negotiate a new pact during the season. The Red Sox eventually traded Lester to the Oakland Athletics for Yoenis Cespedes prior to July's MLB trade deadline.
The southpaw had played his entire career with the Red Sox prior to the trade after being drafted by Boston in the second round of the 2002 Amatuer Draft.
Lester went 6-4 with Oakland in 11 regular season games with a 2.35 ERA and received a no-decision in the A's AL Wild-Card Game loss to the eventual AL champion Kansas City Royals in the postseason.
The Red Sox, who are also linked to free agent and three-time World Series champion third baseman Pablo Sandoval, are expected to have a busy offseason after their World Series defense went south in 2014. The 2013 world champions finished dead last in the AL East last season with a 71-91 record.
Lester went 16-11 overall between the Red Sox and A's in 2014 and ranked fourth in the American League with a 2.46 ERA and fifth with 220 strikeouts in 32 starts.
Lester, a three-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion, is 116-67 in his nine-year career with a 3.58 ERA, 1.276 WHIP and 1,457 strikeouts.
For more coverage, follow us on Twitter @SportsWN and Like Us on Facebook
© Copyright 2024 Sports World News, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
