Chicago Cubs: John Lackey brings edginess to North Side

After 14 seasons and over 2,600 innings pitched, Chicago Cubs’ starter John Lackey, 37, is still bringing the same fire and intensity that has come to define his career.

After eight years in Anaheim, four years in Boston, and two years in St. Louis, John Lackey’s long and illustrious career has brought him to the north side of Chicago.  Lackey has been occupying the third spot in the Cubs’ rotation and has been giving them something they didn’t have much of last season–edginess.

John Lackey has enjoyed a successful career, not just by throwing blistering fastballs, but by spitting fire as well.  One of Lackey’s most defining characteristics has always been his ‘rough and tumble’ attitude.

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While Lackey is generally laid back on his off days, it’s a different story entirely when he takes the mound.  He brings a certain toughness that seemed to be lacking in the Cubs’ rotation last season, particularly in the playoffs.

Less than two months into the season, Lackey has already shown us some of his signature grit.

Exhibit A: Earlier this month Lackey carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning of a game versus Atlanta when Braves’ third baseman Adonis Garcia tried to bunt his way on in an attempt to break it up.  The ball rolled foul but needless to say, Lackey was not amused.  There’s an unwritten rule in baseball that you do not attempt to break up a no-hitter with a bunt.  Lackey made sure to remind Garcia of this by letting a fastball fly clear over top of the umpire’s head.

Exhibit B: In the second game of a split doubleheader with the San Diego Padres, opposing catcher Christian Bethancourt launched a solo homer in the fifth, which ended up serving as the lone run of the ballgame.  Bethancourt took a moment to stand at the plate and admire his homer, and then took a long slow trot around the base paths.  Lackey took offense and fired a number of expletives Bethancourt’s way.

“I got a long memory,” Lackey said after the game according to Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com.  “He’ll learn.”

Lackey’s attitude and edginess should be contagious around the Cubs’ clubhouse.  The Cubs are in “win now” mode and if a guy like John Lackey senses any nonsense, it won’t go on for much longer.  This will surely serve as a major asset for a Cubs team that has World Series expectations.

The Cubs’ lack of rotation depth was exposed last season when they were swept by the New York Mets in the NLCS.  With Lackey in the three spot, the Cubs feel they now have that missing piece.  Even at age 37, Lackey has been proven durable, pitching deep into games and showing excellent velocity.

There are also a couple of familiar faces for Lackey in Chicago.  Jon Lester was a teammate of Lackey’s on the Boston Red Sox and Joe Maddon was an assistant coach in Anaheim when Lackey pitched for the Angels.

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“When you know people as well as we know each other you can definitely talk to each other a little bit different than you talk to everyone else,” Lester said at Cubs training camp in the spring.

Lackey went 13-10 with a 2.77 ERA last season with the St. Louis Cardinals, effectively filling the ace role in the absence of an injured Adam Wainwright.  Having the former ace of a 100-win ball club fill in the third spot of the rotation speaks to the incredible depth that the Cubs have built.

With Lackey locked in on the mound, the Cubs will hope their World Series dreams come true.