2 min read • May 08, 2022
Posted in
After a 10-17 start to the season, the Red Sox got more bad news regarding veteran starting pitchers Chris Sale and James Paxton.
The 33-year-old lefty is “a few weeks” behind schedule in his return from a fractured rib after suffering a non-baseball related injury, according to chief baseball officer Chain Bloom.
Sale is on the 60-day IL due to the right ribcage stress fracture he suffered in February and was expected back in early June.
The ProBaseballDocs expressed concern about his availability this season because of the unusual and multi-pronged injury, as he is likely dealing with damage to his oblique muscles in addition to the fractured ribcage that will need to be addressed.
Any injury to the midsection is difficult for pitchers as they put undue stress on the area with their rotational motion used while throwing.
Sale had a 3.16 ERA with 52 strikeouts in nine starts last season in his return from a March 2020 Tommy John surgery that potentially impacted him during a lackluster 2019 campaign.
Sale made seven consecutive all-star teams between 2012 and 2018 but has not pitched more than 158 innings since 2017.
Fellow southpaw James Paxton is dealing with posterior elbow soreness that will stall his return from Tommy John surgery.
Paxton, 33, underwent the elbow surgery in April 2021 and was ahead of schedule, according to Chain Bloom, before the setback.
Most pitchers take close to 18 months to fully recover from Tommy John, putting his eventual return closer to the end of the season if at all this year.
Paxton, however, said he hopes to return before the all-star break, according to Christopher Smith of MassLive.com.
Paxton signed a one-year deal with Boston this offseason that includes a second-year option.
Written by
