St. Louis Cardinals: Three Reasons John Lackey is Easy to Hate

Former St. Louis Cardinal John Lackey is now one of the key starters in the rotation for the Chicago Cubs. If that isn’t reason enough for Cardinals’ fans to hate him, here are three more.

John Lackey is scheduled to take the mound against the Cardinals on Monday night (7:15pm CT, FSMW) as the Cubs’ game one starter for a three-game series in St. Louis.

Before we begin, the most obvious reason for Cardinals’ fans to hate John Lackey is because he is a Chicago Cub. There is no explaining necessary for the deep and competitive hatred that Cardinals’ fans have for any player donning the blue, red and white.

The fact is, that would be too easy of a reason to hate Lackey, so this list will not dwell solely on the fact that Lackey is now the arch-enemy, but on the fact that Lackey just begs to be disliked. So, here are three reasons John Lackey is so easy to hate:

1. John Lackey is a traitor

Just last season John Lackey was fighting for the Birds on the Bat, and as most of you know, was one of the most effective pitchers for St. Louis. Lackey was the Cardinals’ game one starter in the NLDS against none other than the Chicago Cubs.

In this game Lackey dominated the Cubs, shutting them out for seven innings on the way to a 4-0 win. Lackey’s game four start had a different result, but the Cubs were riding a wave of momentum that the Cardinals couldn’t stop.

Many Cardinals’ fans felt a deep sense of appreciation for Lackey. The way he left it all on the field in every start and really dug deep for the Cardinals was something that fans admired and not something that all pitchers do every time out.

Little did Cardinals’ fans know, this appreciation would soon turn to loathing as Lackey went to the dark side and joined the Cubs in the offseason. While the Cardinals didn’t offer Lackey a deal outside of the “Qualifying Offer”, it is still hard to see Lackey pitching for our bitter rivals

Everyone remembers Jason Heyward‘s departure from St. Louis, but it was Lackey that led the way. Coming off of a solid season, Lackey left a 100-win Cardinals team, for an upstart Cubs team that offered him more money. Now he may not have done it in spite of the Cardinals, but it definitely hurts to see a pitcher like Lackey go directly from the Cardinals to the Cubs.

Next: He's obnoxious

3. John Lackey is pretty damn good

If John Lackey wasn’t a good pitcher, then there be no reason to write this list. Lackey was a workhorse for the Cardinals last year, pitching the most innings of any starter on the team (218 IP).

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A more key element to that stat is that even though he pitched the most innings, he finished with a 2.77 ERA, which was good enough for second on the team behind Jaime Garcia, who only started 20 games. At 37-years-old, John Lackey is still a dominant force on the mound.

To build the case even further, in Lackey’s only start against the Cardinals since he left the club, he shut down the Redbirds. Lackey pitched seven innings of scoreless baseball while striking out 11 batters on the way to a 5-0 win. So far this season, Lackey is 4-2 in eight starts, with an ERA of 3.31.

Next: Time to Capitalize against Chicago

So, as the Cardinals approach Monday night’s game against Lackey and the Cubs, Cardinals’ fans hope to see less of what happened last time out. With Adam Wainwright on the mound, and beginning to look like his usual self, Cardinals fans should be a little more optimistic about facing Lackey this time around.

Do you have another reason to hate John Lackey? Let me hear it! You can find me on Twitter @NChill17 or hit me up in the comment section below.