Lester vs. Gabbard

by Dean Geddes

There doesn't seem to be much talk about a position battle brewing in the Red Sox organization. We all know Curt Schilling is coming back to the rotation, and somebody is going to the bullpen. The Red Sox have two great young lefties, Kason Gabbard and Jon Lester pitching for the right to claim the fifth spot in the rotation.

At the start of the season, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that Jon Lester would take Julian Taverez's spot in the rotation once he fully recovered from his battle with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. But in one of those problems every team loves to have, a young lefty by the name of Kason Gabbard has stepped in and been pitching lights out.

Honestly, before last night, I would have said the spot belongs to Gabbard, no question. But Gabbard's meltdown in the fifth inning after being staked to a 9-1 lead on Thursday, it's become a race again. I still think Gabbard should get the spot, you can't judge a pitcher on one outing, heck, one inning. But with these two young guns, you don't have much else to go on.

Lester pitched a gem in his first return to the Major Leagues since being diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. It was a feel-good story not just for Red Sox fans, but for baseball fans. He held a great Indians offense to two runs, pitched deep into the game, and got the win. That's all you can ask for from your starter. And quite frankly, Lester is a major league caliber pitcher. There is no reason he should not be pitching every fifth day in the bigs. Unfortunately for him, and fortunately for the Red Sox, he is on a team with a lot of quality starters.

It will be interesting to see how each fares in their next start. But in all honestly, unless Gabbard has a horrible outing, I don't see how the Red Sox front office could put him in the bullpen, he has been too good. Even courting his poor outing in Cleveland, he is 4-0 with a 3.73 ERA this year in seven starts.. He seems to thrive at Fenway too, posting a 4-0 record with a 2.03 ERA in four starts.

If Lester is lights out tomorrow against Tampa Bay, then perhaps the Red Sox can get him another start before Schilling comes back. Maybe slowdown Schilling's rehab or give Wakefield a breather. It will be a shame to see either of these guys in the pen, but this rotation ain't big enough for the both of them. Not yet.