Jon Lester

Jon Lester works 5 2/3 shutout innings in Cubs' win

Chicago Cubs Jon Lester tossed 5 2/3 scoreless innings Wednesday in the Cubs' 6-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

What It Means:

Lester ran into a couple of jams, yielding eight total hits and walking two, but he did a fine job of damage control on his way to five strikeouts. The left-hander is now 3-1 with a 1.58 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 38 whiffs in 40 innings for the first-place Cubs. He will take on the punchless San Diego Padres at home next time out.

Wednesday's performance actually slightly increased Lester's xFIP to 2.95, which ranks 10th, and he now has a 24.7 strikeout percentage. Our models currently project Lester to record a 3.13 ERA and 23.1 strikeout percentage over the remaining course of the season.