Jon Lester, Nationals Reportedly Agree to 1-Year Contract in Free Agency

The Washington Nationals reportedly added a three-time World Series champion to their rotation.

Washington and left-handed pitcher Jon Lester agreed to a one-year deal Monday, per ESPN's Jeff Passan. Jon Heyman of MLB Network reported the deal is "thought to be for close to" $5 million in guaranteed money.

Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post added more details:  

This comes after Ken Rosenthal and Jon Greenberg of The Athletic reported that the southpaw was in talks with the Nationals. That seemed to indicate Lester's time with the Chicago Cubs was over after six seasons.

The writing was on the wall in October when the Cubs declined the $25 million club option on Lester's deal and instead paid him a $10 million buyout.

That freed him to sign elsewhere, and the Nationals seized the opportunity to add a veteran leader and five-time All-Star to their rotation even if he is past his prime at 37 years old.

There is no doubting Lester's status as one of the best pitchers of his generation. 

He started his MLB career in 2006 with the Boston Red Sox and pitched there until they traded him to the Oakland Athletics in 2014. He won two rings in Boston and finished his time there with a 3.64 ERA and 1.29 WHIP.

Chicago's decision to sign him prior to the 2015 campaign signaled a new era for the franchise that had not won a World Series since 1908. The Cubs went to the National League Championship Series in Lester's first season with the team, finally snapped the championship drought in his second season and advanced to the playoffs in five of his six years.

Lester was a two-time All-Star with the Cubs and cemented his status as a franchise icon by becoming the 2016 NLCS MVP in the same year Chicago won the World Series.

He has always been known as a dominant and reliable force in the postseason, as evidenced by his 2.51 ERA and 1.02 WHIP in 154 innings spread out across 26 games. He has worked on short rest and come out of the bullpen if called upon in October and is a major reason both the Red Sox and Cubs won titles with him on the roster.

The Nationals hope he will help them do the same even at this stage of his career.

While he was inconsistent in 2020 on the way to a 5.16 ERA, Lester also won't be counted on to anchor the rotation like he did so often in his prime. If he can be a solid veteran option on the back end of a staff that includes Stephen Strasburg and Max Scherzer, this deal would be worthwhile.