It's hard to believe that in December 2009, John Lackey was a desired commodity. The Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees, Mets, Boston Red Sox and Pittsburgh Pirates were all interested in Lackey.Lackey had been the Los Angeles Angels ace and was one of six pitchers that won at least eleven games from 2004-2009. Baseball Prospectus said that, "Lackey stands alone as the best of the best, a relatively young righty who carries significantly less risk than the other high-upside hurlers."
Well, the man who was once considered to be the best pitcher in the 2010 free agent class is down again.
In late December 2010, the Red Sox thought they were getting an elite pitcher, but after a mediocre 2010 season and sub-par, injury-riddled 2011 season, Lackey appeared to be just another starter. Lackey did not pitch a game in 2012 due to Tommy John surgery, spending the entire year on the disabled list.
And sadly, in his first start in a Red Sox uniform since 2011, Lackey left the game in the fifth inning. Currently as of Saturday night, Lackey's arm injury has only been diagnosed as a strained right bicep.
“It’s sore. But hopefully not too serious,” Lackey told the Boston Globe.
“I turned around and he was holding his arm. Hopefully he’s OK,” catcher David Ross said. “It stinks. I think everybody is worried about him and will say a prayer for him. He’s such a good teammate, first of all. To come back and how well he was throwing the ball, I was excited for him.”
This is, of course, horrible news for all Red Sox fans who were looking for a bounce-back season from the No. 41. Hopefully, he only strained his right bicep or else his season -- and possibly even his career -- in Boston may be finished.
