Sale allowed six runs on nine hits and one walk while striking out two over five innings in Tuesday's spring start against the Orioles.
Sale, making his third Grapefruit League start, allowed a pair of first-inning home runs and didn't have command of his slider, but the left-hander bumped his pitch count to 70, was sitting mid-90s with his fastball, and got acclimated to working with traffic on the bases. Sale will make one more start before breaking camp with the Red Sox for the first time since 2019. He'll start the second game of the season against Baltimore.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Will start second game of season
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Manager Alex Cora confirmed Wednesday that Sale will start the second game of the regular season April 1 in Boston versus the Orioles, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.
As anticipated, Corey Kluber will get the Opening Day nod March 30, with Sale following the two-time Cy Young Award winner in the rotation. The 33-year-old left-hander has logged only 11 total major-league starts since the end of the 2019 campaign, but he's looked sharp this spring with nine strikeouts and only one walk through 10 innings of Grapefruit League action. Most importantly, Sale finally carries a clean bill of health.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Fans five in scoreless start
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Sale allowed one hit and struck out five over three scoreless innings in Saturday's start against the Twins.
Sale, who made his second Grapefruit League start, reached 95 mph on his fastball, per Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe, and has looked every bit the ace of a staff. He hit 96 mph in his first outing. The left-hander's struck out seven over five scoreless spring innings. Despite looking like a staff ace, Sale is not expected to take the ball Opening Day, as Corey Kluber's spring routine has him lined up for that honor. Sale will next pitch four innings on the back fields Thursday, according to Christopher Smith of MassLive.com.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Won't start Opening Day
Rotowire
Red Sox manager Alex Cora announced Sunday that Sale won't pitch Opening Day against the Orioles, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.
Cora says that the plan all along was for Sale not to get the nod for the opener, and that there's a "good chance" that Corey Kluber will instead get that honor against Baltimore. Sale has battled injuries over the past few seasons, and it sounds like Boston will give its presumed ace a few more days of rest before he opens the season, although there's no plan yet as to when he'll make his 2023 debut. Sale offers significant fantasy reward with his ability to miss bats, but there's plenty of risk based on his lack of action over the past three seasons.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: To make spring debut Monday
Rotowire
Sale (wrist) is officially scheduled to make his Grapefruit League debut Monday versus the Tigers, Joe Trezza of MLB.com reports.
Sale threw a successful live batting practice session Wednesday and is now ready for a taste of real competition. The 33-year-old left-hander was limited to 5.2 major-league innings (two starts) last season due to a range of different injuries, but he entered this spring with zero limitations and might just be ready to return to ace-like status in 2023.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Ready for Grapefruit League debut
Rotowire
Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Wednesday that Sale (wrist) is in line to make his Grapefruit League debut early next week, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.
Cora's comments came before Sale completed another live batting practice session Wednesday, with Abraham noting that the southpaw tossed two innings and 43 pitches during the workout. Assuming Sale experiences no complications coming out of the live session, he could be cleared to cover around two or three innings in his first Grapefruit League start. Sale reported to spring training with no restrictions, but the Red Sox have nonetheless chosen to take things slowly with the prized lefty after he made just two starts in 2022 while missing time with a stress fracture in his rib cage, a broken finger and right wrist surgery. Even so, Sale will be ready to go for Opening Day so long as he avoids any setbacks in his handful of spring outings.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Faces batters
Rotowire
Sale (wrist) threw a simulated inning against live batters Saturday and came away with no issues, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.
Sale threw 23 pitches and avoided hard contact. He said there were command issues against one batter, but Sale was largely pleased with the results, particularly the shape of his breaking ball. The lanky left-hander was limited to two starts last year amid a number of injuries. He sustained a rib injury during a bullpen session in February, then suffered a broken pinkie finger against the Yankees in July followed by a wrist injury in an August bicycle accident. Next up for Sale is a two-inning live bullpen session Thursday before making his spring debut after that.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Trending toward spring debut
Rotowire
Sale (wrist) is tentatively scheduled to make his Grapefruit League debut March 7 against Atlanta, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports.
Sale first needs to check a few more boxes by getting through a one-inning live batting practice session this Saturday and then a two-inning live BP round next Thursday. The 33-year-old left-hander logged only 5.2 major-league innings in 2022 due to a fractured wrist, a fractured finger and a stress reaction in his ribcage, but early reports from Red Sox camp have all been encouraging. He could wind up being a big-time value pick in fantasy drafts for 2023.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: To throw live BP on Saturday
Rotowire
Sale (wrist) will throw live batting practice Saturday, Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald reports.
Sale threw another bullpen session Tuesday and will face hitters for the first time in camp this weekend. The veteran left-hander missed most of the 2022 season with a stress fracture in his ribcage, a fractured finger and a fractured wrist, but all appears to be good with Sale so far this spring. It's not clear when he might make his Grapefruit League debut, but the expectation is that he'll be ready for Opening Day.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Remains on track for Opening Day
Rotowire
Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Wednesday that it's "realistic" that Sale (wrist) will be ready to go for Opening Day, Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald reports.
Cora's comments came after Sale threw his first bullpen session of the spring Wednesday and apparently checked out fine. Sale, who is scheduled to throw another side session Saturday, looks as though he'll be going through a relatively normal throwing progression this spring, despite ending the 2022 campaign on the shelf due to a fractured right wrist that he had surgically repaired. The Red Sox are still likely to proceed cautiously with the southpaw this spring due to his injury history and veteran status, so he may not immediately be worked into Grapefruit League rotation like some of the other pitchers who are competing for roster spots and/or starting roles in camp.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Getting started immediately
Rotowire
Sale (wrist), who is set to throw a bullpen session Wednesday, is scheduled to throw a second one Saturday before facing hitters next week, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.
Sale is getting early work in what is being described as a "normal spring," something the left-hander hasn't experienced since 2019. Injuries have limited him to just 11 starts since, but if he remains healthy this spring, the 33-year-old Sale is expected to be Boston's No. 1 starter.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: To throw bullpen Wednesday
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Sale (wrist) is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Wednesday in Red Sox camp, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports.
Abraham notes that this will be the first "normal spring" for Sale in the last 3-4 years. The left-hander missed the first half of the 2022 season due to a stress fracture in his ribcage and then suffered a broken wrist in a bicycle accident in August, ultimately logging just two total appearances for Boston. But both of those injuries are now in the rearview and he'll be looking to return to top-flight form in 2023.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Throwing off mound
Rotowire
Sale (wrist) has begun throwing off the mound, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.
Sale broke his wrist in a bicycling accident in August, and he was limited to just two appearances in the 2022 season. The left-hander has dealt with injuries over the few years, but if healthy, still offers the potential to miss bats when on the mound.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Opts in for next two years
Rotowire
Sale (wrist) opted into the final two years of his five-year, $145 million contract Tuesday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.
If Sale had been healthy over the first few years of his deal, he may have decided to head back to the open market ahead of his age-34 season, but he simply hasn't been able to stay on the field. He's only made 11 total starts through the first three years of his contract, with Tommy John surgery wiping out all of his 2020 season and most of 2021 before a series of injuries limited him to just two outings in 2022. He's expected to be recovered from wrist surgery (on his non-throwing arm) by spring training and will attempt to be a much more significant contributor next season.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Transferred to 60-day IL
Rotowire
Sale (wrist) was transferred to the 60-day injured list Saturday.
The transaction has no bearing on Sale's return timeline, as he's already been ruled out for the year after breaking his wrist in a bicycle accident. The move clears space on the 40-man roster for Boston to select Jeurys Familia's contract.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Breaks wrist, done for season
Rotowire
The Red Sox announced that Sale (finger) underwent season-ending surgery Monday to repair a fractured right wrist, which he suffered in a bicycle accident over the weekend. The team expects him to be a full participant for the start of spring training.
The broken wrist is the latest in a growing list of long-term injuries for Sale, whose availability for the remainder of the 2022 campaign had already been in question after he underwent surgery July 18 to repair a broken left pinkie finger. Sale's rehab for the broken wrist now becomes the more pressing concern, but if there's any positive takeaway, it's that the injury is to his non-throwing arm, and he should have plenty of time to make a full recovery before he reports to the Red Sox's spring training facility next February. Because Sale is still due $75 million over the next three years, he's unlikely to exercise the opt-out clause in his contract this winter after injuries have limited him to just 57.1 regular-season and playoff innings with Boston since the start of the 2020 season.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Starts playing catch
Rotowire
Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Sale played catch Friday for the first time since undergoing surgery on his broken pinkie finger.
Sale underwent surgery July 18, a procedure described as "an open reduction and internal fixation of a left fifth finger proximal phalarix fracture." The club has not given a timetable for his return.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Undergoes finger surgery
Rotowire
Sale underwent surgery on his broken left pinky finger Monday.
Sale suffered a left fifth finger proximal phalanx fracture after being hit by a comebacker in the first inning Sunday against the Yankees. In other words, he broke his left pinky finger and will now be out at least a month following surgery. Sale believes he will pitch again this season and we've yet to see an official timeline from the Red Sox. Nonetheless, the left-hander won't likely be fantasy relevant until early September at the soonest.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Confident season isn't over
Rotowire
Sale (finger) will see a specialist in Boston on Sunday or Monday and is confident he will pitch again this season, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.
The Red Sox didn't offer a timetable for Sale, who was removed in the first inning of his start Sunday against the Yankees with a fractured left pinkie finger. Sale suggested a personal 4-to-6-week recovery timetable, though the typical timeline for this kind of injury is 6-to-8 weeks. While Sale's season may not be over, fantasy managers in shallower leagues without injured-list spots may not be able to justify stashing him.
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Red Sox's Chris Sale: Fractured finger confirmed
Rotowire
The Red Sox confirmed that Sale was diagnosed with a fractured left pinkie finger after taking a comebacker off the hand during the first inning of his start Sunday against the Yankees, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.
The team didn't offer a timeline for Sale's return, but Bill Koch of The Providence Journal notes that a rehab program for an injury of this sort to a pitcher's throwing hand typically entails a recovery period of up to two months. If the Red Sox determine Sale needs surgery to address the injury, he would likely miss the rest of the regular season and would need Boston to make a deep playoff run to have a shot at pitching again in 2022. The setback is a devastating blow for the Red Sox and for Sale, who missed all of the 2020 campaign and most of the 2021 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, then was sidelined for the first three months of the current season with a fractured right rib cage. Sunday's outing against New York marked just his second start of the season.
