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Jon Lester is going to start the first game of this weekend’s series against the White Sox and let’s just say it’s not the most favorable matchup for the Cubs.
After struggling for a week against Milwaukee and Cleveland, the White Sox have rebounded on offense by destroying the Tigers. They’ve won seven of their last nine, including five straight.
The White Sox lineup has been as good as advertised, especially when it comes to slugging. From one through seven in the lineup, the White Sox can get on the board with one swing of the bat and they’ve brutalized left-handed pitching in 2020.
Absurd numbers against lefties.
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And a lot of that damage has come from Tim Anderson, who just owned the Tigers this past week.
As for Lester, he’s coming off his worst start of the season, giving up five runs on nine hits against the Brewers Sunday. In his first three starts, Lester pitched 17 innings and allowed a total of two earned runs on seven hits.
The veteran lefty isn’t going to rack up high strikeout numbers anymore, so he does rely on getting weak contact to get outs. So far in 2020, Lester ranks fourth on the Cubs in average exit velocity at 86.5mph.
Looking at career numbers against Lester, José Abreu is 8-for-21, Edwin Encarnación has a .490 slugging % against the lefty, while Yoan Moncada and James McCann are a combined 7-for-22, with four doubles and a homer.
So far in 26 games this season the White Sox have hit 43 home runs, the fourth most in MLB. By comparison, the Cubs have played in 24 games and only have 31 home runs.
With all that being said, Lester’s a veteran and knows how to navigate through lineups. Yet, it will certainly be a daunting task for him.
Damn, this White Sox lineup is scary as hell.
