Yesterday, Jon Lester was removed from his start with a “tight left lat,” and was to be examined further after the game.
We haven’t heard much in terms of those results just yet, but the sense around the team is cautious optimism.
Indeed, reports at the Chicago Tribune and NBC Sports have suggested that although Lester is indeed likely to hit the disabled list at some point today, the Cubs don’t believe the injury is serious enough to cost him more than a couple starts.
However, according to Craig Calcaterra, the Cubs are sending Lester to go see Dr. Stephen Gryzlo for a more in-depth examination (presumably today or ASAP), and it’s entirely possible that things are more serious than they seem right now.
Frankly, it’s all quite speculative.
The good news though, is that as of right now a 10-day disabled list stint may be all Lester needs to get back into working order. I wouldn’t expect him back in exactly ten days, of course – something closer to two weeks would probably be more realistic – but that’s pretty great news, all things considered.
Mike Montgomery will step into the rotation in Lester’s place (barring a surprise move for someone like Justin Verlander, that is), and in that respect, the Cubs are very fortunate. We’re still awaiting the official DL and associated roster move and we’ll update you as soon as that goes down.
UPDATE:
Early indications are Lester injury is pretty minor. Still waiting to hear from him and DL likely, but this is a best-case.
— Sahadev Sharma (@sahadevsharma) August 18, 2017
Early word is #Cubs encouraged by the medical report on Lester. He will be back this season
— Carrie Muskat (@CarrieMuskat) August 18, 2017
Sahadev Sharma is hearing that Lester’s injury may be “pretty minor,” and that while a DL stint is still possible, likely even, this is a best-case scenario. Indeed, Muskat follows up with a confirmation that he will be back this season (at one point, some stray reports had suggested otherwise).
Given how much Lester means to this team both during a divisional race and (hopefully) the playoffs, you should be quite pleased with the early results. The Cubs are already down Addison Russell and Willson Contreras, while Ben Zobrist has been playing with a hurt wrist, so healthy is not a strength at the moment.
