The Red Sox are rolling. And they should be getting a big reinforcement soon.
Ace Chris Sale is rehabbing from Tommy John surgery and his return may not be too far away. He reached a huge milestone Wednesday when he threw another live batting practice session at Fenway Park. Sale could be ready for a rehab assignment in the near future, according to manager Alex Cora
At 51-31 — 20 games over .500 for the first time since 2018 — the Red Sox are one of the biggest surprises in MLB. They have the most wins in baseball and a 3.5 game lead in the AL East. With back-to-back sweeps against the Yankees and Royals, they are 19-8 since June 4.
Boston’s offense is just fine, sitting top-five in baseball in runs, hits, doubles, RBIs, average, slugging and OPS. However, their pitching could use a boost. Boston is just 15th in ERA at 4.10 and has allowed the fourth-most hits in MLB. Sale is ready to help and try to put the Red Sox over the top in their World Series quest.
“That’s the plan,” Sale told reporters on Thursday. “Our staff has done a helluva job up to this point. These guys have been holding it down unbelievably well. We wouldn’t be in the position we are. We’ve got the best offense in baseball, there’s no doubt about that, but we’ve gotta throw the ball, too, and our guys have done an unbelievable job of keeping us in games and putting big starts up when we need it. For me, I’ve just gotta come in and do my job and continue that body of work they’ve been doing the whole year.”
But in the midst of an arduous recovery, Sale won’t get ahead of himself with when he’ll be ready to take the mound for Boston.
“It’s going to be hard not to think about that stuff, but I can’t go there right now,” Sale said. “I can’t. I’ve gotta focus on what I’ve got today, crush it, come in tomorrow, same thing.”