Yu Darvish wanted to give Jon Lester a chance to pitch again for the Cubs.
There’s a good chance Jon Lester never pitches for the Chicago Cubs again after they were knocked out of the MLB playoffs by the Miami Marlins on Friday.
Yu Darvish is taking responsibility for that.
“Very sad right now, because my focus today was to have Lester pitch one more start at Wrigley. That was my goal today and I couldn’t make that happen,” Darvish said after the game. “I’m very disappointed.”
Yu Darvish needed help to give Jon Lester a shot in the playoffs.
Darvish and the Cubs were eliminated in a 2-0 loss to the Marlins on Friday after the game was postponed for weather. A win for Chicago would have extended the series, with Lester scheduled to pitch in Game 3.
It makes sense for Darvish to be disappointed. However, finger-pointing for the Cubs’ postseason disappointment doesn’t belong anywhere near him. Sure, he gave up two runs in the seventh inning, but that was more than enough to give his team a chance. The real culprits were Chicago’s batters, who managed to score one run in two games. That’s just not getting the job done.
A pitcher can only do so much when the likes of Anthony Rizzo, Kyle Schwarber, Kris Bryant, Javier Baez and David Bote combine for zero hits in 19 at-bats.
Either way, it’s a shame Cubs fans won’t get to see Lester pitch in a Chicago uniform one more time. A Game 3 appearance might have made for a gripping storyline as one of the heroes of the team’s 2016 World Series run tried to will the team further into the 2020 postseason.
Lester and the team are certainly acting like his time in Chicago is done. He has a $25 million team option for next year, but that’s likely too much money for the Cubs to take it.