Cubs' Jon Lester proving he's worth every bit of $155M mega contract

When someone signs a gigantic contract he's supposed to be perfect. Any little thing goes wrong and you'll see headlines that show the entire contract value, as if a player is going to earn the entirety of that money in one particular game in the first year of a six-year deal.

A bad game elicits a firestorm of fan criticism on social media, internet message board and on sports talk radio, from callers and hosts alike. You see "what is wrong with [insert player]" articles splashed all over the place. We've all seen it.

To wit, Jon Lester was saddled with snide remarks revolving around "$155 million" throughout a pretty-good-but-definitely-not-great 2015 season. He had a 3.34 ERA (114 ERA+) and 1.12 WHIP with 207 strikeouts in 205 innings. Again, that's pretty good. If he were a run-of-the-mill three starter, any team would have been ecstatic with those numbers. They are not ace-caliber numbers, though, and that's what the Cubs paid for -- an ace.

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