Red Sox ace Chris Sale headed for elbow MRI
Boston Red Sox starter Chris Sale has soreness in his throwing elbow and has undergone an MRI, the team announced two days after the left-hander faced batters for the first time this spring.
Manager Ron Roenicke said Sale felt the soreness in his elbow Monday morning, the day after his 18-pitch batting practice session. Team doctors reviewed the MRI results and sent them to Dr. James Andrews.
“Obviously we’re concerned about it,.” Roenicke said Tuesday.
Sale’s batting practice session Sunday was the first time he faced hitters since he gave up five runs over 6 2/3 innings in a win at Cleveland on Aug. 13. He went on the injured list with elbow inflammation, finishing 6-11 with a 4.40 ERA in 25 starts.
Sale avoided surgery on his elbow, receiving platelet-rich plasma injections in the fall instead.
“There’s some concern, knowing how his 2019 went and knowing how important he is to us,” chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said. “But we also know that in the course of building up, when you do hit these milestones, sometimes you can get sore.
“Everything has gone so well to this point. This is our first bump in the road. Hopefully it’s just a bump in the road, but you can’t help but be somewhat concerned.’’
Sale, who turns 31 on March 30, is entering the first year of a fiveyear, $145 million deal he signed during spring training last year. This will be his third stint on the IL since Boston acquired him before the 2017 season.
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