FORT MYERS, Fla. --Jon Lester pitched in his first game Monday since his last cancer treatment just 2 1/2 months ago. His mechanics were good and his command was outstanding as the Boston Red Sox left-hander retired all three batters he faced on grounders.
"It's great. Just to get back and be normal again is awesome, just to get back on the mound and throw the baseball and not worry about other things," the 23-year-old said. "So it's good, and I enjoyed it and, hopefully, we just build from here."
Lester underwent chemotherapy after being diagnosed with anaplastic large cell lymphoma late last season. He's now cancer free and has regained much of the weight he lost during the treatments.
The plan was for Lester, an outstanding starter since making his major-league debut last June 10, to throw just the first inning in the "B" game against the Minnesota Twins. He needed only eight pitches to get through that. His six fastballs, all strikes, were clocked at between 88-90 mph. He threw two curves in the dirt at 69-72 mph.
http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/redsox/articles/2007/03/05/lester_feels_normal_in_first_game_after_cancer_treatment/?rss_id=Red+Sox+stories+from+Boston.comExcellent news!
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