Still, Lester sees plenty of room for improvement. He walked too many hitters last year and had another slow start. The 27-year-old left-hander begins his pursuit of a cleaner campaign when he makes his first start of the spring Tuesday against the Minnesota Twins at Hammond Stadium.
The contest marks the third straight between the two teams that call Fort Myers home. Minnesota took the opener at home Sunday night and then fell at Boston on Monday afternoon.
Following Lester on the mound will be Alfredo Aceves, Jonathan Papelbon, Randy Williams and Rich Hill.
The Twins will start Scott Baker. Closer Joe Nathan, who was removed from a Grapefruit League game against the Red Sox last year before undergoing Tommy John surgery, is also slated to get some action.
Red Sox vs.Twins
1:05 p.m.
Hammond Stadium, Fort Myers, Fla.
LHP Jon Lester (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. RHP Scott Baker (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Lester is 1-2 with a 4.67 ERA in six career games (five starts) against the Twins. Baker is 0-2 with a 4.35 mark vs. Boston. Those are regular season numbers only.
Twins | Red Sox |
---|---|
TBA |
Marco Scutaro, SS |
The Sox and Twins meet just one more time at City of Palms Park, on March 26.