John Lackey Earns Amica Pitcher of the Week Honors in Red Sox Debut

The trio of Josh Beckett, Jon Lester and John Lackey wasn't the overwhelming success it was anticipated to be — at least not in its first go-round. Yet Lackey, pitching for the first time in a Red Sox uniform and dealing with some distractions, was the sharpest of the three, earning him Amica Pitcher of the Week honors.

"Honestly I had a lot of things on my mind today, and there was some added pressure," Lackey said after his start on Wednesday. "You want to win the series, and being here, I wanted to start out with a good impression. … As a starter, your job is to give your team a chance to win. I felt like I did that tonight, so after that you just want a team win."

Unfortunately for Lackey and the Red Sox, the latter goal was not achieved, despite his best efforts. Lackey went six solid innings, giving up three hits and two walks, striking out three and finishing with an efficient pitch count of 99.

The Sox would eventually fall in extra innings to the Yankees, but Lackey showed that he's capable of shutting down one of the most potent offenses in baseball. As the weather warms and Lackey's pitch count rises to 110, 115 or 120, that effort will result in wins more often than not.