34 Jon Lester SP

Lester allowed seven runs on seven hits and two walks across 2.2 innings during Wednesday's spring game against the Athletics.

Lester hasn't had much luck yet in spring training with a 9.53 ERA and 1.68 WHIP over 11.1 innings. The veteran left-hander is set to take the mound in the season opener March 28 against the Rangers and should continue to ramp up his workload as spring training begins to wind down.

Lester surrendered three runs on four hits and a walk and struck out four over 3.2 innings Thursday against Colorado.

Lester gave up a pair of home runs and posted his worst start of the spring so far in a 7-5 loss. The 35-year-old left-hander has posted a 5.19 ERA with 10 punchouts over 8.2 frames over three starts to kick off spring training and will continue to fine-tune his pitch arsenal as Opening Day nears.

Lester was named the Cubs' Opening Day starter Monday, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.

Lester's status as the top pitcher in a playoff contender's rotation combined with his 3.32 ERA last season could lead him to be overrated by some fantasy players. Unfortunately for the Cubs, the lefty's underlying stats last season didn't paint a particularly pretty picture. His strikeout rate fell four points to an unimpressive 19.6 percent, while his 8.4 percent walk rate was his highest mark since 2011, leading to a 4.39 FIP, a number which certainly doesn't suit a playoff hopeful's ace. At his age (35), a continued slide is more likely than a sudden turnaround.

Lester allowed two runs over three innings in Saturday's Cactus League game against the Brewers. He gave up three hits and a walk, while striking out three.

All of the damage came on a two-out, two-run home run from Travis Shaw in the first inning, but Lester settled in from there. The veteran lefty now has a 3.60 ERA and and six strikeouts through his first five innings of work this spring as he looks to build on a successful 2018 campaign in which he recorded a 3.32 ERA, 18 wins and 174 strikeouts across 32 starts (181.2 innings).

Lester retired six of the seven batters he faced in his Cactus League debut Monday against the Padres, striking out three and giving up no hits and one walk.

Lester dispatched the Padres in efficient fashion in his first outing of 2019, but that alone won't eliminate concerns about the lefty's chances of remaining an anchor for the Chicago rotation this season. He's coming off a campaign in which he went 18-6 with a 3.32 ERA, but a closer look under the hood reveals major downturns in his K-BB% (11.2 percent) and groundball percentage (37.7 percent), his lowest in both categories since 2008 and 2007, respectively. It may be tough to buy into Lester delivering another quality ERA as he enters his age-35 season.