22-Year-Old Red Sox Pitcher Jon Lester Diagnosed with Cancer

[ChileMass]

Say a prayer for the kid. He's got non-Hodgkins lymphoma, which is the bad kind (it's what killed Joey Ramone, for one). Last night on Boston Channel 5, there was an interview with a doctor from the famous Dana-Farber cancer clinic who only gave the kid a 50-70% chance of recovery, but I've read eleswhere this morning that it's treatable with chemo and the fact that he's only 22 and an athlete will help. What a bummer for this talented kid. Send positive vibes his way.

And for the Sox - all you Yankee fans can take comfort in the fact that this is the kid the Sox have centered their pitching staff around for the next several years (along with Josh Beckett) and refused all trade offers on 7/31, so it's pretty much a lock they will be looking up at the Yanks again next year. Lester's chemo regimen will take a minimum of 4-6 months, so basically forget next year. God truly is a Yankee fan......

 

[BeanoNYC]

And for the Sox - all you Yankee fans can take comfort in the fact that this is the kid the Sox have centered their pitching staff around for the next several years (along with Josh Beckett) and refused all trade offers on 7/31, so it's pretty much a lock they will be looking up at the Yanks again next year. Lester's chemo regimen will take a minimum of 4-6 months, so basically forget next year. God truly is a Yankee fan......

Hey...that's not fair. My heart goes out to the kid. I'd rather see him healthy and beating the Yanks than see a young talent sick and not doing what he loves.

 

[ChileMass]

Beano - so you're the one kind, true-hearted Yankee fan! Glad to hear it.......

Thanks - I think we all hope he'll be healthy and live to be 100......

 

[ALLSKIING]

You forget about the sport when you hear about something like this...Vibes sent.

 

[FRITOLAYGUY]

Baseball is just a game.. Life is not

 

[Sheik Yerbouti]

You honestly look at baseball as what it truly is, a game. A game for multi-millionaires, but a game. When Teddy Bruschi had that stroke, it did the same thing to me for football, although I am a much bigger baseball fan. Secondly, I thought he was incredibly selfish to go back to playing, one wrong hit and he's dead. Family's not going to see him much after that, and yea, I know that could happen to any player, but someone who had a stroke should really consider what's truly the most important, if he loves football so much, there is always coaching.
Ultimately, what he (Jon Lester) and his family are going through is so much more important than a ten game win or lose streak. My heart and prayers to him and his family.

 

[Grassi21]

Update..

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2686799

 

[cbcbd]

Wow, thanks for the update Grassi... that's really good to hear.

 

[Grassi21]

Even this Yankee fan can pull for a Bo Sox now and again...

 

[ALLSKIING]

Great to see a story like this!!

 

[Grassi21]

Another update...

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=270723105

 

[JimG.]

I meant to post about the Lester kid winning his first game back in the Yankee thread. I'm glad to see that, I'm a big fan of overcomers, people who make it all the way back from life threatening situations. I'm glad for him.

Red Sox are playing good baseball; since they won the first game of the series, I hope they sweep Cleveland. That will help the Yanks in the wild card, assuming they keep winning too.

Go Sox!

 

[drjeff]

Not just because I'm a Redsox fan, but just because it would be a GREAT thing for baseball in this era of steroid controversy and Bonds stealing the HR record becuase of it, but I really hope that Lester goes undefeated for the rest of the season, now that would be the type of story that baseball would LOVE to have!

 

[Marc]

Not just because I'm a Redsox fan, but just because it would be a GREAT thing for baseball in this era of steroid controversy and Bonds stealing the HR record becuase of it, but I really hope that Lester goes undefeated for the rest of the season, now that would be the type of story that baseball would LOVE to have!

He'd be accused of something, trust me.




Oh wait. This is baseball. Not international cycling.

 

[FRITOLAYGUY]

Lester 1 Cancer 0

 

[JimG.]

He'd be accused of something, trust me.




Oh wait. This is baseball. Not international cycling.

Yeah, cycling events seem to be all about outing dopers nowadays. Not much fun to follow anymore.