Good morning, Mets fans!

Jesse Rodgers of ESPN first reported that Jon Lester announced his retirement on Wednesday. The three-time World Series champion played 16 seasons in MLB and had five All-Star selections along with 200 career wins. Former Red Sox teammate Dustin Pedroia praised Lester by saying, “Anytime he had the ball in a big game, you were going in for an 80-minute massage. You were in good hands.”

Lester told ESPN that his body was no longer able to sustain the workload of a full MLB season.

Now, it is time for the morning briefing.

Latest Mets News

Keith Hernandez had a Zoom call to talk about his upcoming jersey retirement. During the hour-long call, Hernandez remarked, “This is the highest honor that our organization can give to a player. I grew up as a kid like everybody else going to baseball games and going to some of these parks with the names up on the wall and the numbers retired for them. I’m just a little blue-collar kid growing up in Northern California.

“It was my dream to be a ballplayer and then to have a team and all the success that I that through Major League Baseball had a lot to do with my former teammates as well. But this is unbelievable. I’m just ecstatic and so proud and so thankful.” Nate Mendelson has more on this story.

Joseph Langan shared an interview with Brett Baty that occurred during the AFL season.

The New York Mets are hosting a seasonal hiring fair for positions in security, guest experience, hospitality, and other positions on Saturday, January 29. The event will operate in two three hour blocks: 9 am to 12 pm and 2 pm to 5 pm. For more information, click on this press release.

Doug M wrote a draft review of Jack-Thomas Wold, noting his strong college stats and ability to hit for power.

Latest MLB News

Shohei Ohtani is in this month’s latest edition of GQ magazine. In this article by Daniel Riley, Ohtani talks about being considered the new face of baseball.

Liam Martin of CBS Boston News shared footage of Harrison Bader showing up to school earlier this week as a substitute teacher.

The Miami Marlins announced the following promotions within their organization:

Rachel Balkovic, the recently promoted manager of the Low-A Tampa Tarpons, commented on the progress of women in baseball by saying, “Bias and stereotypes are going to be around forever. But I do think we’ve made a ton of progress (…)

“There were many times in my career when I felt extremely lonely…now, I’ve got 100 women that are out there in various roles that are having similar experiences.” Balkovic revealed that she used to use the first name Rae on resumes so that her resume would not be immediately removed from contention. Also, Billie Jean King congratulated her on the promotion. Click here to view her introductory press conference.

Emma Baccalieri of Sports Illustrated wrote an article about how the hall of fame ballot tracker has improved the selection process.

Latest on MMO

Rich Sparago has an update on the MLB lockout.

John Flanigan wrote a free agent profile for LHP Danny Duffy.

Shaun Huntley discusses the Topps final 2021 products release from New Years Eve.

On This Date in Mets History

1962: Kevin Mitchell was born on this date. In game six of the 1986 world series, Mitchell followed Gary Carter‘s two-out, tenth inning single with another single, helping the Mets continue their comeback. He later tied the game on a wild pitch by Bob Stanley. Gary Carter nicknamed him “World” due to his ability to play many positions.

Birthdays: Elmer Dessens (51), Kevin Mitchell (60)

Let’s go Mets!