Lester no Price on playoff stage
CLEVELAND — Just 18 days after David Price of the Red Sox sat in what likely was the same chair on the same platform in the same Progressive Field press conference room the day before his Division Series start, Jon Lester settled into that seat yesterday.
The Cubs ace will throw from the same mound Price did, too, and face the same Indians lineup — the on ly difference being that Lester will stand on a World Series stage mountains higher than the one the Sox pitcher stood upon that first week in October.
Eighteen days in October is a blip in the respective careers of the two tall left-handers, each with an indisputable track record of regular-season excellence.
And yet the reputation gap between the two never looked vaster or loomed larger than it did yesterday.
Lester is the “proven postseason wizard” as Cubs president Theo Epstein labeled him, the lefty with the 2.50 and 1.017 postseason ERA and WHIP who is starting Game 1 of the World Series tonight.
Price, who got roughed up in Game 2 of the Division Series and owns the 5.54 and 1.230 postseason ERA and WHIP, is winless through eight playoff starts.
What does Lester have that Price, so far, has been unable to muster in October?
Lester can only provide what he knows is the “cookie-cutter answer, but you execute your fastball, you execute your pitches — it works the same here as it does during the season, so I just try to take that mindset.”
Lester’s first postseason start was in Denver, a scoreless, 52⁄ 3- inning stint in the clinching Game 4 of the 2007 World Series. He cited the influence of Curt Schilling and Josh Beckett for sticking with his regularseason routine.
“I feel like when I’m in that routine and I show up, now it’s the fun part, now you get to pitch,” Lester said. “You spend the other four days kind of busting your butt and sitting around to get to this point.”
When Price spoke at Progressive Field the day before his Division Series start about what he needed to do, he kept it simple. He spoke of wanting to win and wanting to dominate and knowing that he was capable of doing just that.
“To just calm those emotions and go out there — you can’t try and do too much, you have to understand that what you bring to the table is good enough,” Price said. “And you have to be one of those pieces to that puzzle. You can’t be the whole picture.”
Cubs manager Joe Maddon, who managed Price with the Rays, sounded stumped about why some starters thrive and others sputter in October.
“Wow, I honestly — that I don’t know,” Maddon said. “(Pitchers like Lester) slow things down. I think some players have that ability better than others. Some people, I think, might again look at the macro, others the micro, of the moment, but you take those blinders off, it can be a little bit overwhelming. If you stay focused on the catcher, you have a much better chance. So, I think it’s the heartbeat, the ability to slow the moment down has a lot do with it, which also speaks to your confidence.”
John Lackey, Lester’s teammate with the Red Sox and Cubs, is a good postseason pitcher. He stressed that fakers need not apply to the fraternity of good postseason starters.
“When you hear guys say, ‘It’s just another game,’ they’re lying to themselves — it’s not,” Lackey said. “You’ve got to embrace the fact that you’re going to feel different, you’ve got to embrace the fact that you’re going to have extra energy, and if you use that in a positive direction, it can help you. If you’re fighting it and lying to yourself and trying to perform, too, it can probably be a deterrent.”
David Ross, Lester’s personal catcher with the Red Sox and now Chicago, also leaned in the direction of the psyche to account for success from the mound in October.
“I know that guys who do it are guys who seem to do it over and over again — maybe it’s a mindset, maybe they treat it like a fight,” Ross said. “Emotions are high with those guys I’ve seen succeed. Jon’s emotions definitely run high in those moments he’s out there fighting. He understands the importance of each pitch, each out and each baserunner, especially in a postseason environment. I think over time, once you have success, you gain confidence and learn how to deal with the moment. Sometimes it’s new to guys, and until you have that success, maybe you doubt yourself a little bit.”
Indians first baseman Mike Napoli will have to face Lester this time around, but he was able to play behind him when the Sox won the 2013 World Series.
“When that big stage comes along, he gets better — he can go one inning at a time and work through things,” Napoli said. “It’s a long year. You’ve got 35 starts. You’re going to have ups and downs, but he always seems to have the ups when he’s in that spotlight.”
Eighteen days ago, Price could not deliver in the spotlight.
Maybe as soon as next year, he’ll get another chance. That’s for another day. This is Lester’s day — once again.