John Lackey
John Derran Lackey (born October 23, 1978) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 2002 through 2017 for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Boston Red Sox, St. Louis Cardinals and Chicago Cubs. A three-time World Series champion with three different teams, Lackey is regarded as a key figure in his clubs' postseason success, winning the title-clinching games of two out of the three Series. Selected to the MLB All-Star Game in 2007, he won that year's American League (AL) earned run average (ERA) title. After missing the 2012 season due to ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction surgery in his pitching elbow, and helping the Red Sox win the 2013 World Series, Lackey was named the winner of the Tony Conigliaro Award.
For the president of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, see John Lackey (politician). For the Irish cyclist, see John Lackey (cyclist).John Lackey
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A right-handed pitcher and batter, the Anaheim Angels selected Lackey from Grayson County College in Texas in the 1999 amateur draft. He made his MLB debut with the Angels in 2002 and helped the franchise win its first World Series title that year. After winning more than 100 games with the Angels, Lackey signed with Boston in free agency prior to the 2010 season. Declining performance and elbow injuries in 2011 led him to allow the most earned runs in the American League before missing the next season due to elbow surgery. Lackey rebounded in 2013 to win his second championship. Boston traded him to St. Louis in July 2014, and prior to the 2016 season, he signed with Chicago as a free agent. Lackey earned his third World Series championship in 2016 with the Cubs.
Known for his intense competitiveness and overall durability, Lackey reached at least 200 innings pitched six times in his career, and in five seasons was in the top ten in games started. With the exception of his rookie season in 2002, he reached at least 10 wins every season of his career. In ten of his 15 seasons, he registered an ERA below 4.00 − once below 3.00 − and four times was in the top ten in ERA. He also twice reached the top ten in both wins and strikeouts. He appeared in ten postseasons overall, recording a career 8–6 record and 3.44 ERA over 144 innings. In 2007 and 2015, he received votes for the Cy Young Award.
Early life[edit]
Lackey was born in Abilene, Texas to Derran and Sharon Lackey. Before Lackey was in high school, he played at Dixie Little League in Abilene. Lackey attended Abilene High School, and was a letterman in football, basketball, and baseball. In baseball, he was a two-time first team All-District honoree and as a senior, he was also an All-State selection.
College career[edit]
He played one season of baseball at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA), playing first base and sometimes moonlighting as a relief pitcher. The first summer after attending UTA, Lackey first learned to pitch in the Kansas Jayhawk Summer League. In 1999, he played on the Junior College World Series champion Grayson County College team in Denison, Texas, which went 50–13. In 100 innings pitched (IP), he posted a 10–3 record with a 4.23 earned run average (ERA) and 88 strikeouts. At the plate, he batted .428 with 15 home runs (HR) and 81 runs batted in (RBI). In the World Series, he tallied eight hits, two HR, and seven RBI.[1]
Professional career[edit]
Draft and minor leagues[edit]
The Anaheim Angels selected Lackey in the second round of the 1999 Major League Baseball draft as the 68th overall. He began his professional career with the Boise Hawks in the Short Season Class A Northwest League, posting a 6–2 record and a 4.98 ERA. Already in his first year, Lackey became known for his competitiveness. According to MLB.com, Tom Kotchman, the veteran manager, recalled "one particular game when he tried to replace Lackey only to have the tall Texan tell him otherwise. Sure enough, Kotchman trotted back to the dugout and Lackey kept dominating, as if to say, 'See? I'm not done yet.'"[2]
In 2000, Lackey split his time between the Single-A Cedar Rapids Kernels, High-A Lake Elsinore Storm, and Double-A Erie SeaWolves. Because of his quick ascent up the minor league ladder, he was named the Angels' Minor League Pitcher of the Year,[3] posting a combined 15–9 record with a 3.15 ERA. He began 2001 with Double-A Arkansas before being promoted in July of that year to the Triple-A Salt Lake Stingers, where he struggled a bit, posting a 3–4 record and a 6.71 ERA. He recovered in the 2002 season, being named Best Pitching Prospect of the Pacific Coast League and accumulating an 8–2 record with a 2.57 ERA.[3]
Personal life[edit]
On August 30, 2011, Lackey filed for divorce from Krista, his wife of almost three years, who had been battling cancer since March and underwent chemotherapy through June.[65][66][67][68] The divorce was finalized by February 2012.[69][70][71]
Lackey resides in the Austin area in the off-season. He and his wife, Kristina Carter, had their first child, a daughter, in November 2015. He is also a stepfather to Kristina's children from her first marriage.[1]
Popular culture[edit]
In 2009, the satirical publication The Onion published an article about Lackey, titled "Superstitious John Lackey Has to Build, Destroy a Luxury Hotel Before Every Start."[72] The article was intended to satirize superstitious professional athletes.
He was featured in a 2011 Kevin Fowler music video alongside fellow Red Sox starting pitchers Josh Beckett, Jon Lester, Tim Wakefield, and Clay Buchholz.[73]
In 2021, Lackey made a cameo in the football film Under the Stadium Lights as a guest speaker at a pep rally.