Chris Sale (34, Boston Red Sox), who had fallen from the league’s top ace to a troublemaker, regained his position and predicted a reversal in the 2023 season.
Sale started in an exhibition game against the Detroit Tigers held at Jet Blue Park in Fort Myers, Florida, USA on the 7th (hereinafter Korean time) and pitched well with 2 hits, 2 strikeouts and no runs in 2 innings.
The beginning was a bit unsettling. Sale allowed a hit straight to leadoff batter Matt Bearing in the first inning. However, after that, he caught Riley Green, Javier Baez, and Eric Haas in succession to end the inning without conceding.
Sale, who also took the mound in the second inning, caught Tyler Nevin and Kerry Carpenter and quickly removed two out counts. Afterwards, he gave up a hit to Zack Short, but the follow-up hitter, Nick Mayton, was directly handled by the pitcher’s grounder, ending the second inning with no runs. Sale, who finished the mission with two innings, ended the day pitching by replacing Ryan Brazer in the third inning with Boston leading 4-0. After Seil’s good pitching, Boston gained momentum in the early stages, widening their lead to 7-1 and winning the game.
Sale was the undisputed ace of Boston. With a career record of 323 games (1678 innings), 114 wins, 75 losses and an ERA of 3.03, he was “Doctor K” representing the American League (AL), including 308 strikeouts in 2017. He was a guaranteed check for strikeouts, recording over 200 strikeouts each year from 2013 to 2019. In his parent team, the Chicago White Sox, he received less spotlight due to poor team performance, but after moving to Boston in 2017, he reached the postseason for two consecutive years, and in 2018 he also experienced his first personal World Series victory. Boston, who confirmed Sale’s skills, signed a five-year, $145 million (188.4 billion won) contract extension with him in early 2019.
However, right after the contract, Sale turned into a headache for the team. He was sluggish in 2019 with an ERA of 4.40 with 6 wins and 11 losses, and in 2020, he did not pitch in a single game as he underwent Tommy John surgery (elbow ligament joint surgery). He returned only in 2021 and showed signs of resurgence by posting an earned run average of 3.16 with 5 wins and 1 loss in 9 games.
However, in 2022 he became a wreck again. After missing about three months due to rib pain, he fractured his pinky finger in his second appearance after returning, and ended the season as he was in a bicycle accident while injured. After his long-term contract, Sale started only 36 games in 4 years, and if narrowed down to 3 years, only 11 games.안전놀이터
Boston’s mound collapsed without the ace. Nathan Eboldi and Eduardo Rodriguez held out, but unlike Sale, they were not league aces. Boston had to stay in the lower ranks for the other three years except for 2021, when it reached the American League Championship Series. This season, when Eboldi and Rodriguez left one after another, the starting lineup is also unstable and the performance prospects are pessimistic.
However, when the sale comes back, the story is different. As it is an exhibition game, we cannot attach much significance to the result, but it is positive that the highest speed was 154 km/h. Except for health, Sale is the undoubted ace. If only the redemption is regained, the appearance of Ace Sale can be expected again.