Jon Lester retires after 16 seasons

[JMobile]

HOF candidate?

[Doug tushyterror]

No chance.. Andy Pettitte with 256 wins & a 60 WAR hasn't even gotten yet & most likely never will. Lester with a 44 WAR unquestionably never will.

Amazingly consistent with the same ERA & winning % with the Cubs and Sox.

[clockwise1965]

Hard to say if is a Hofer.

[MinnesotaFats]

IDK that 63% win rate is probably to 10 all time among guts w 200 wins.

He's closer than you'd think

[MinnesotaFats]

IDK that 63% win rate is probably to 10 all time among guts w 200 wins.

He's closer than you'd think

Just looked

Retires 7th all time active win % and 24th in modern era.

[d2bets]

Just looked

Retires 7th all time active win % and 24th in modern era.

Not to mention WS wins with 2 different times and dominated in the postseason. His postseason numbers have to be among the best.

[stevenash]

Hall of Fame?
No, 44.2 career WAR, the HOF standard is 73.0

Now, if there was a Hall of Fame for class acts, first ballot no doubt about it.

[pavyracer]

He will be in. Not a lot of lefties in the HOF.

[stevenash]

He will be in. Not a lot of lefties in the HOF.

Seventeen.

Name them.

[Doug tushyterror]

Hall of Fame?
No, 44.2 career WAR, the HOF standard is 73.0

Now, if there was a Hall of Fame for class acts, first ballot no doubt about it.

Only other comparable with that few wins is Halladay. Roy much more dominant with 2 CYA, & 2 second place finishes even though his WAR was only 64.

[MinnesotaFats]

The thing is....

He was the ace that ended the Cubs drought...that might get him over the hump

[d2bets]

Only other comparable with that few wins is Halladay. Roy much more dominant with 2 CYA, & 2 second place finishes even though his WAR was only 64.

Halladay should be in too.

[d2bets]

Hall of Fame?
No, 44.2 career WAR, the HOF standard is 73.0

Now, if there was a Hall of Fame for class acts, first ballot no doubt about it.

Explain Jack Morris. And Jim Kaat just got in with 45 WAR. Standards are lowering for starters because they just don't pitch as much anymore. If they go by the old standards, very very pitchers will ever make it.

[Doug tushyterror]

The thing is....

He was the ace that ended the Cubs drought...that might get him over the hump

What Lester has going for him is he's universally respected & a cancer survivor.. That might have some sway with the Era Committee (formerly Veterans Com) in 10-15 yrs.

[risKingDigits]

Guy can’t throw to first base, no HOF

[Brock Landers]

He wasn't ever dominant

[gummo]

I don't see him making it.

[stevenash]

He wasn't ever dominant

That's correct.
Only black ink was when he led the league with 18 wins in 2018.
Nobody is shitting on Lester, solid career, but not a Hall of Famer.

[pavyracer]

Seventeen.

Name them.

Lefty Grove?

[stevenash]

Who am I?

Who am I?

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	W	L	W-L%	ERA	G	GS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	ERA+	FIP	WHIP	H9	HR9	BB9	SO9	SO/W
15 Yrs				186	117	0.614	3.51	470	389	2591.2	2518	1104	1010	254	668	1538	122	3.8	1.229	8.7	0.9	2.3	5.3	2.3
162 Game Avg.				15	9	0.614	3.51	37	31	205	199	87	80	20	53	122	122	3.8	1.229	8.7	0.9	2.3	5.3	2.3

[Doug tushyterror]

[d2bets]

It's not really proper to compare different eras. Stats for a top player in one era may be totally different from another era. You really need to compare players of the same era to see if they were among the elite in terms of stats and accomplishment for their position during those 10-20 years or so. For a pitcher, I would want to see if they were among the 10-15 best or so during the 15-20 year period that they competed. For a specific position, it might be more like the 3-4 best. But you just can't compare stats for a pitcher who pitched 2005-2020 vs. a pitcher who pitched 1925-1940. Just doesn't work.

[stevenash]

But it's fair to compare Jimmy Key to Jon Lester.
One began his career eight years after the other retired.

Jon Lester

SUMMARY

Career

WAR

44.2

W

200

L

117

ERA

3.66


G

452

GS

451

SV



IP
740.0

SO

2488

WHIP

1.278

Jimmy Key

SUMMARY

Career

WAR48.9

W186

L117

ERA3.51


G470

GS389

SV10


IP2591.2

SO1538

WHIP1.229

One could argue Key had a slightly better career too.

[JMobile]