The Redemption of John Lackey

On October 30, 2013 at approximately 11:24 P.M., the Boston Red Sox won their third World Series in a decade with a 6-1 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals in Game Six of the World Series. While the Red Sox offense certainly provided a spark all year long, the postseason was marked by dominant pitching, and one man certainly stood from the rest: John Lackey.

John Lackey was one of the more dominant pitchers in Major League Baseball for much of the 2000s, so there were high hopes when he signed with the Red Sox in 2010. Lackey was mediocre his first season in Boston, posting a 14 and 11 record with a 4.40 Earned Run Average (ERA). 2011 is when the wheels fell completely off the wagon. Lackey went 12 and 12 with a 6.41 ERA, and allowed the most runs in the American League. He was also at the center of the “Chicken and Beer” scandal, in which Lackey and fellow pitchers Josh Beckett and Jon Lester would drink beer and eat fried chicken in the clubhouse when they were not pitching. This kind of nonchalant behavior turned many in Red Sox Nation against him, and the ensuing September collapse that pushed the Sox out of the playoffs didn’t help.

Lackey missed all of 2012 while recovering from “Tommy John” surgery on his right elbow. On April 6, 2013, in his first start since his surgery, Lackey re-injured his arm. He was diagnosed with a biceps strain, and after this minor scare, he came roaring back. In 2013, Lackey went 10 and 13 with a 3.52 ERA, the third lowest of his career and lowest as a member of the Red Sox. But the real magic happened in the playoffs…

            He went 3-1 in four starts, and even came into Game Five of the World Series in relief. How dominant was he, you still ask? His ERA during the American League Championship Series was 0.00. He out-pitched last year’s American League Cy Young and MVP winner Justin Verlander in a decisive Game Three victory. He was lights out throughout the playoffs. Even more, he did a complete 180-degree turn in the minds of Sox fans, going from the most hated player on the team, the symbol of all that was wrong with the ego-centric team of 2011, to a postseason hero and lovable character on a team of bearded buffoons.

A defining moment occurred in the seventh inning of Game Six of this year’s World Series. He allowed a few men on base and a run to score, but when manager John Farrell went to take him out of the game, cameras caught Lackey telling Farrell, “No, this is my guy. This is my guy.” That kind of attitude is what Red Sox fans expected of him when he first signed. He redeemed himself at the same time the Red Sox redeemed themselves. Six months ago, people wanted John Lackey traded at the end of the season. Now, people give him standing ovations when he exits games. The Red Sox were not supposed to make it this far. They were expected to contend and be knocked out in the Wild Card, maybe the American League Division Series if they were lucky. On the backs of guys like David Ortiz, Mike Napoli, Jon Lester, Koji Uehara and John Lackey, they proved everyone wrong.