Chris Sale’s return date was just announced by the Boston Red Sox and it can’t come at a better time. The Red Sox are playing their worst baseball to date. They are getting exposed as the “overachievers” that they were, coming out of the All-Star break. They have fallen to 3 GB to the first place Rays, 2-8 in their last ten games, and have shown no spark recently. They squeaked out a double header split versus the Blue Jays on Saturday. I know that the pitching (Nick Pivetta & Tanner Houck/Garrett Whitlock) only gave up one run a piece in game 1 and 2 but the pitching on this team has been straight out bad, the last two weeks. This team has already demoted Perez to the bullpen, which I am 100% supportive of because he only is “allowed” to face the order twice and every start, taxes the bullpen. Tanner Houck was already sent back down to Worcester but he will be in the rotation very soon. The sure things in the rotation are the struggling Edwardo Rodriguez and Nathan Eovaldi but they will stay no matter what, unless injury does happen for either of them. Evoaldi has never made it a full season and I am waiting something to happen, but (knock on wood) maybe it won’t. That leaves Garrett Richards and I believe that he will be getting demoted to the bullpen whenever Houck comes back or they will DFA him all together. The rotation will be Sale, Rodriguez, Evoaldi, Pivetta, and Houck come September and the playoffs (if they make it that far).
With all that being said, Chris Sale will return on August 14th! Chris Sale will be facing the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park. Sale made five rehab starts in the minors. pitched 20 innings over his five minor league rehab starts, recording a 1.35 ERA and 35 strikeouts. He had eight strikeouts over 4.2 scoreless innings Saturday in his final rehab start with Triple-A Worcester. His pitch counts were 39, 43, 64, 81, & 89 in the five rehab starts. I believe that he will pitch around 80 pitches on Saturday and the Red Sox will slowly ramp him back up so he is ready in time, come playoff time. Chris Sale said, "I felt like what I did tonight, I could have gone and done that in a big league game," "I would say my last two starts, I've felt normal." He will have six days of rest from his rehab start in Worcester to his start versus the Orolies. I believe that this will be the case going forward. The Red Sox will always have Sale on six days rest to start and then slowly bring him back to five. This is also why I think Houck will be back sooner rather than later.
Sale has not pitched in a game for Boston since Aug. 13, 2019, which means it will be two years and a day between major league appearances for the Red Sox ace. The 32-year-old underwent Tommy John surgery on March 30, 2020, to repair the ulnar collateral ligament in his throwing arm. Cora said Eduardo Rodriguez will start Tuesday's game against the Rays, while Nathan Eovaldi will start against Tampa Bay on Wednesday. Cora did not announce a starter for Thursday's game against the Rays or Friday's game against the Orioles. Cora said Sunday to reporters that the seven-time All-Star feels great. Is this the spark that the team needed to get them out of this funk? Only time will tell but I believe they need to do something on the offensive side to get them to wake up too. Either Schwarber’s return in a few weeks (even though he had a set back at his rehab assignment so that doesn’t look too good right now), Triston Casas to play first base until Schwarber can comeback, or Yario Munoz with his Worcester hitting streak, that he can hit anywhere, regardless what level he is at.
I am glad that Chris Sale is coming back. We haven’t seen him in so long. It will be great to see him pitch with his style and fast pace and hopefully this is what the team needs to wake up from their horrible drought, as of late…