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This isn’t a Cubs trade, because Jon Lester left them at the end of 2020 and became a free agent, later signing a one-year deal with the Nationals.
Today, Washington sent Lester back to the NL Central:
Jon Lester is going to the Cardinals, per a source
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) July 30, 2021
Lester has a 5.02 ERA and 1.593 WHIP in 16 starts for the Nats so far this year. That includes a game at Wrigley May 17 in which three Cubs homered off him: Jason Heyward, Willson Contreras and Javier Báez.
Hey, two of those guys are still Cubs.
Here’s the return for Lester:
Lane Thomas: 25-year-old, right-handed outfielder with big league experience and under club control through 2025. That's ... more than I would've thought they could get for 2 months of Jon Lester. https://t.co/eo6jfBtGqk
— Mark Zuckerman (@MarkZuckerman) July 30, 2021
The Cardinals and Cubs have two series left this year: At Wrigley September 24 (doubleheader)-25-26, and the final three games of the 2021 season October 1-2-3. By then the two teams should be in a titanic battle for third place in the NL Central, and it’s likely Lester will pitch in at least one of those games against... hardly any of his former teammates.
Anyway, thought you’d like to know.