Les Lancaster
From Sports Library
Les Lancaster (born April 21, 1962 in Dallas, Texas), is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues from 1987-1993. He is currently the manager of the Reno Silver Sox.
Lancaster's best season came in 1989 where he was the Cubs' set-up man. He was the winning pitcher in Game 2 of the 1989 NLCS. He also was on the mound in Game 3, when he claims he forgot what the count was against Robby Thompson. Thinking the count was 3-0 and not 2-2, Lancaster grooved a fastball down the middle of the plate. With Brett Butler on first base, Thompson launched a homer into left-center, and the Giants took a 5-4 lead that they would not relinquish.
When Mitch Williams was injured in 1990 and later demoted from the closer's role, manager Don Zimmer used Lancaster and left-hander Paul Assenmacher as a closer-by-committee arrangement. Zimmer even used Lancaster and Assenmacher in a way such that one would play left-field while the other would pitch to take advantage of a lefty-righty matchup. This experiment was short-lived, however.
Contents |
Teams
- Chicago Cubs 1987-1991
- Detroit Tigers 1992
- St. Louis Cardinals 1993
Pitching Stats
- 323 Games
- 41 Wins
- 28 Losses
- 22 Saves
- 408 Strikeouts
- 4.05 ERA
Fast Facts
- Lancaster was the winning pitcher for the Cubs in Game 2 of the 1989 NLCS versus the San Francisco Giants.
External links
| 1989 National League East Champion Chicago Cubs Starting Lineup: 1. Jerome Walton CF | 2. Ryne Sandberg 2B | 3. Andre Dawson RF | 4. Mark Grace 1B | 5. Dwight Smith/Lloyd McClendon LF | 6. Luis Salazar/Vance Law 3B | 7. Shawon Dunston SS | 8. Joe Girardi/Damon Berryhill/Rick Wrona C Starting Pitchers: Greg Maddux | Mike Bielecki | Rick Sutcliffe | Scott Sanderson | Paul Kilgus |
