The Cubs' John Lackey is a postseason vet, not a rookie any more

LOS ANGELES >> Fourteen years ago, when Joe Maddon was the Angels bench coach, his team handed the ball for Game 7 of the World Series to an untested rookie named John Lackey.

On Wednesday, as manager of the Chicago Cubs, Maddon will hand the ball for Game 4 of the National League Championship Series to a wily old veteran named … John Lackey.

And, to hear Maddon tell it, there is little difference.

“He hasn’t changed at all,” Maddon said. “He’s in better shape. That’s my answer. He’s actually in physically better shape than he was. Check out the pictures from 2002 compared to how he looks now.”

Aside from having a little more youthful fat back then, Lackey has the same repertoire then as now, despite 14 years and one Tommy John surgery in between.

Lackey has a slider and a changeup, which has improved, but Maddon said he’s still essentially a guy who lives with a 92-94 mph fastball.

“He’s a cowboy when he pitches,” Maddon said. “He goes right after the hitters. There’s not a whole lot hidden when John pitches.”

Lackey is now a few days shy of his 38th birthday and looking for World Series ring No. 3. After winning one with the Angels, he won one with the Boston Red Sox in 2013.

Thanks to frequent visits to the postseason, Lackey is more used to sitting in a press conference room the day before a start, dealing with longer breaks between innings, and longer pregame ceremonies.

He also said he learned how to handle the adrenaline of a postseason start.

“Over the years I’ve found that you’re going to feel something different,” Lackey said last week before his start in the division series. “You’re going to be a little more amped up. To fight that sometimes can be counterproductive. If you embrace it and use it, it can take you to another level.”

Back in 2002, he wasn’t thinking of any of that.

“I was just worried about, you know, not messing it up for the older guys more than anything,” he said.

Lackey pitched five innings, allowing one run in Game 7 against a powerful San Francisco Giants lineup led by Barry Bonds. Lackey then turned the game over to the Angels dominant bullpen to close out the franchise’s only championship.

Since then, Lackey has started 18 other games in the postseason. In his career, he’s thrown 131 1/3 innings in the postseason, with an 8-5 record and a 3.22 ERA.

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Although that experience no doubt helped shape him into the pitcher he is today, he said he hardly ever reflects on those days.

“I haven’t thought about that in years,” he said. “Maybe, I’ll check out a video when I retire in a few years.”

In the meantime, Lackey is looking to add to his postseason resumé with an improvement from his last outing. He gave up three runs in four innings against the Giants in the division series. Maddon suggested Lackey is still working back from shoulder soreness that landed him on the disabled list for a few weeks in August.

“I think he’s still building up his arm strength,” Maddon said. “The last game in San Francisco, the velocity was pretty good. He probably wasn’t as sharp location-wise, but his stuff is absolutely there. I know he’s going to be ready for the moment.”