Tag: Baseball

Red Sox ace Chris Sale strikes out Wander Franco in first start of rehab assignment

Red Sox ace left-hander Chris Sale officially began his rehab assignment in the Florida Complex League on Monday night.

Getting the start against the Rays’ FCL affiliate in Port Charlotte, Fla., Sale allowed one earned run on one hit, one walk, and one strikeout over just one inning of work.

After issuing a leadoff walk to Odalys Peguero, Sale rebounded by striking out fellow major-leaguer Wander Franco — who is also on a rehab assignment — with a slider (and wild pitch) that allowed Peguero to advance to second base.

With one out and a runner in scoring position, Sale got Carlos Colmenarez to pop out to short. Peguero then proceeded to steal third and score from there on an RBI single off the bat of Junior Caminero.

Sale ended his outing by getting Jhon Diaz to ground out to second, so he wound up retiring three of the five batters he faced. Rather than come back out for a second inning, the 33-year-old was relieved by right-hander Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz. He threw 22 pitches and topped out at 96 mph with his fastball, per The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

This was the first time Sale pitched in a competitive environment since Game 5 of last October’s American League Championship Series. The veteran southpaw began the season on the 60-day injured list because of a right rib stress fracture he sustained during a bullpen session in late February. His recovery was then slowed due to what he described as a non-baseball health concern related to his family’s medical history.

Now that he has one rehab outing under his belt, Sale will likely need to make three or four more while working on a starter’s schedule in order to get stretched out to five innings. When that milestone is reached (presumably sometime next month), he will be ready to return to Boston’s starting rotation.

“He’ll be here at one point, and he’s going to contribute,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said of Sale, via MLB.com’s Ian Browne. “Like I said before, this is a lot different than last year as far as his arm [goes]. He’s in a much better spot. He’s moving a lot better, so we expect him to use all his pitches, which is important compared to last year. Just be him. It’s a trade that not everybody can do.”

(Picture of Chris Sale: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Pedro Castellanos, Niko Kavadas earn Eastern League, Carolina League Player of the Week honors

A pair of Red Sox first-base prospects took home weekly honors from the respective leagues they play in. Earlier Monday afternoon, Minor League Baseball announced that Double-A Portland’s Pedro Castellanos and Low-A Salem’s Niko Kavadas were named Eastern League and Carolina League Players of the Week for the week of June 13-19.

Castellanos appeared in all six games of Portland’s most-recent series against the Reading Fightin Phils. In those six contests at FirstEnergy Stadium, the right-handed hitter went 12-for-28 (.429) at the plate with two doubles, one home run, five RBIs, two runs scored, zero walks, and four strikeouts.

By recording at least one hit in all six of those games, Castellanos extended his hitting streak to 16 consecutive games. On the 2022 campaign as a whole, the 24-year-old is batting .283/.307/.465 (109 wRC+) with 16 doubles, one triple, eight homers, 42 RBIs, 22 runs scored, seven walks, and 52 strikeouts over 58 games (244 plate appearances) for the Sea Dogs.

Among qualified Eastern League hitters this season, Castellanos ranks eighth in doubles, fourth in RBIs, ninth in batting average, 22nd in slugging percentage, 29th in OPS (.773), and 34th in wRC+, per FanGraphs.

Defensively, the 6-foot-3, 195 pounder has seen playing time at first base and both corner outfield positions this season. He has logged 257 1/3 innings at first, 26 innings in left, and 113 innings in right.

The Red Sox originally signed Castellanos for just $5,000 as an international free agent coming out of Venezuela in July 2015. Always known for his ability to hit for average, the Carora native is eligible to become a free agent again this winter.

Castellanos, who turns 25 in December, becomes the first member of the 2022 Portland Sea Dogs to earn Eastern League Player of the Week honors this year.

Kavadas, meanwhile, had a monster week for Salem in its series against the Delmarva Shorebirds at Carillion Clinic Field. Over the course of six games, the left-handed hitting slugger went 9-for-17 (.529) with three doubles, four homers, 11 RBIs, 10 runs scored, nine walks, and just seven punchouts.

Selected by Boston in the 11th round of last year’s draft out of the University of Notre Dame, Kavadas has enjoyed a moderate amount of success in his first full professional season. Following a 2-for-3 performance on Sunday, the 24-year-old is now slashing a stout .279/.456/.570 (182 wRC+) to go along with 17 doubles, one triple, 11 home runs, 42 RBIs, 31 runs scored, one stolen base, 54 walks, and 68 strikeouts across 56 games (241 plate appearances) for the Salem Sox.

Among qualified hitters in the Carolina League this season, Kavadas ranks 15th in batting average, first in on-base percentage, second in slugging percentage, second in OPS (1.026), first in isolated power (.291), first in walk rate (22.4%), and first in wRC+, per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Kavadas has logged 343 innings at first base this year and has otherwise served as Salem’s designated hitter. The 6-foot-1, 235 pounder out of Granger, Ind. is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 44 prospect in Boston’s farm system.

Given what he has done at the Low-A level this season, it seems like Kavadas could be on the verge of a promotion to High-A Greenville. He becomes the second member of the 2022 Salem Red Sox to earn Carolina League Player of the Week honors and joins fellow infielder Blaze Jordan by doing so.

(Picture of Pedro Castellanos: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox call up top prospect Jeter Downs from Triple-A Worcester, designate James Norwood for assignment

The Red Sox have called up infield prospect Jeter Downs from Triple-A Worcester. In order to make room for Downs on the major-league roster, recently-acquired right-hander James Norwood was designated for assignment, the team announced prior to Monday’s series opener against the Tigers.

Downs, who turns 24 next month, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 7 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The Red Sox originally acquired the Colombian-born infielder — along with Alex Verdugo and Connor Wong — from the Dodgers in the blockbuster trade that sent Mookie Betts and David Price to Los Angeles in February 2020.

After spending the entirety of the 2021 campaign with Triple-A Worcester and closing it out in the Arizona Fall League, Downs returned to the WooSox for the start of the 2022 season. Coming into play on Monday, the right-handed hitting 23-year-old was batting .180/.297/.397 (86 wRC+) with six doubles, one triple, 11 home runs, 21 RBIs, 35 runs scored, 11 stolen bases, 25 walks, and 69 strikeouts over 53 games spanning 222 plate appearances.

Defensively, Downs has seen all his playing time this season come at shortstop. But the 5-foot-11, 195 pounder also has extensive experience at second base and should provide the Red Sox with solid infield depth up the middle while he is up with the club.

According to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo, Downs’ first stint in the majors is expected to be short-lived with both Christian Arroyo (COVID-19) and Enrique Hernandez (right hip flexor strain) slated to return to action before Boston’s three-game series against Detroit comes to an end.

As of Sunday night, the Sox had 14 pitchers and 12 position players on their big-league roster. By Monday, all MLB teams were required to cut the number of pitchers on their roster down to 13. Boston accomplished this by effectively swapping Norwood in favor of Downs.

Norwood, who was acquired from the Phillies in exchange for cash considerations on Saturday, was activated for Sunday’s series finale against the Cardinals but did not pitch in the game. The Red Sox now have the next seven days to either trade, release, or possibly sneak the 28-year-old through waivers and keep him in the organization.

Following Monday’s transaction, the Sox still have 39 players on their 40-man roster. That will increase to 40 once Arroyo is activated from the COVID-19 related injured list.

(Picture of Jeter Downs: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox top prospect Triston Casas has yet to participate in baseball activities since spraining right ankle on May 17

It has been more than a month since top Red Sox prospect Triston Casas last appeared in a game for Triple-A Worcester.

On May 17 at Polar Park, Casas sustained a right ankle sprain while running on the basepaths. He was placed on Worcester’s 7-day injured list on May 22 and has since made the trek to the Sox’ Fenway South complex in Fort Myers, Fla. to continue his rehab.

When Casas initially suffered the injury, the Red Sox believed the 22-year-old first baseman would only be sidelined for a short period of time. They have since learned it is more serious than originally expected.

As a left-handed hitter, Casas shifts most of his weight onto his right foot when he swings. Because of this sprain, though, the 6-foot-4, 252 pounder has had trouble pushing off his ever-important right ankle.

“In the beginning, we thought it was something minor,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith) on Sunday. “Around the bag, he twisted his ankle. We thought it was going to be day-to-day. But he wasn’t moving well. And as you know, he’s a big dude. He’s a big guy. And he hasn’t been able to actually push off of it. It’s not something that we’re worried about.”

Prior to getting hurt, Casas — Baseball America’s 19th-ranked prospect — was batting .248/.359/.457 (115 wRC+) with nine doubles, six home runs, 22 RBIs, 22 runs scored, 23 walks, and 25 strikeouts over 36 games (156 plate appearances) with the WooSox this season.

Coming into the year, it seemed like Casas was in line to make his major-league debut at some point in 2022 after spending an extended period of time in Worcester. In his tenure as Boston’s chief baseball officer, Chaim Bloom has stressed how important making adjustments in Triple-A is to a prospect’s development.

With this setback, though, Casas has missed out on important development time that could potentially impact his path to the big-leagues.

So that part, he’s missing at-bats and that’s the part that he’s actually disappointed in a sense,” said Cora. “But we expect him to keep moving forward, keep getting better

Given that he has not been able to push off his right ankle, Casas has yet to resume baseball activities but has begun running again, per Smith. That being said, there is still no timetable for when the Miami-area native could return to action.

“It’s just a matter of him being able to push off and move around,” Cora said. “When that happens, we’ll decide what we do. Right now, he’s just down there doing his rehab, moving around, but nothing yet as far as when he starts playing.”

(Picture of Triston Casas: John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

Nick Pivetta strikes out 10, Trevor Story and Christian Vázquez both homer as Red Sox take series from Cardinals with 6-4 win

The Red Sox won the rubber match of their three-game series against the Cardinals on Sunday afternoon. Boston yet again held on for a 6-4 victory over St. Louis at Fenway Park to improve to 36-31 on the season and 13-4 in the month of June.

Nick Pivetta, making his 14th start of the year for the Sox, dazzled by limiting the Cards to one run on four hits and four walks to go along with 10 strikeouts over seven strong innings of work.

All four walks Pivetta gave up came within the first three innings of Sunday’s contest. The one run came on a two-out RBI single from Harrison Bader in the top of the fourth.

From there, though, Pivetta stranded Bader at third base by getting Ivan Herrera to strike out on six pitches. The right-hander then retired eight of the final 10 batters he faced and emphatically ended his outing by punching out the side in the top of the seventh.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 108 (65 strikes), Pivetta wound up throwing 60 four-seam fastballs, 35 knuckle-curveballs, and 13 sliders. The 29-year-old induced eight of his 12 swings-and-misses with the four-seamer while averaging 93.3 mph and topping out at 95.1 mph with the pitch.

Following Sunday’s performance, Pivetta now owns a 1.77 ERA in his last nine starts dating back to May 7. The Red Sox are 7-2 in those games.

By the time Pivetta’s afternoon had come to an end, the Sox lineup had already compiled a 2-1 lead over the Cardinals and rookie starter Andre Pallante. Trevor Story got Boston on the board first in the bottom half of the second inning.

With two outs and the bases empty, Story crushed his 10th home run of the season and first since May 26 on a 3-1, 95 mph heater down the heart of the plate from Pallante. The ball left his bat at 104.4 mph and traveled 397 feet to right field.

Three innings later, Alex Verdugo led off the bottom of the fifth with a groundball single to center field. A wild pitch allowed Verdugo to move up to second base, and Jackie Bradley Jr. proceeded to drive him in on a two-out RBI single through the right side of the infield.

Bradley Jr., who is now batting .313/.353/.479 in 31 games at Fenway Park this season, put the Red Sox up 2-1 with his 22nd RBI of the year.

Shortly after Pivetta recorded the final out in the top of the seventh, Christian Vazquez led off the bottom half of the frame with a line-drive double before advancing to third on a Bradley Jr. groundout. Rob Refsnyder then plated Vazquez on a run-scoring base hit off Genesis Cabrera that made it a 3-1 game in favor of Boston.

In relief of Pivetta, John Schreiber struck out the only three batters he faced in a perfect eighth inning. In the latter half of the frame, Vazquez struck again after Verdugo and Story both reached base with one out.

On a 2-1, 94.3 mph sinker from Drew VerHagen that was down in and, Vazquez clobbered a three-run home run 407 feet over the Green Monster to give the Red Sox a commanding 6-1 advantage.

Vazquez’s third big fly of the season would prove to be important given the trouble Tyler Danish ran into in the ninth. Danish allowed two runners to reach base while recording the first two outs of the inning. Rather than slam the door on the Cardinals, though, the righty served up a 114.4 mph, three-run blast to Juan Yepez that cut Boston’s lead down to two runs at 6-4.

Not taking any chances, Red Sox manager Alex Cora gave Danish the hook in favor of Tanner Houck, who gave up a single but rebounded by fanning Brendan Donovan on eight pitches to pick up his fourth save of the season in as many opportunities.

Next up: The Tigers come to town

The Red Sox will kick off the final leg of their homestand by welcoming the 26-40 Tigers into town for a three-game set. Monday’s series opener will feature a pair of rookie right-handers going at it as Josh Winckowski will start for Boston and Alex Faedo will do the same for Detroit.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Nick Pivetta: Sarah Stier/Getty Images)

Red Sox option Kutter Crawford to Triple-A Worcester; James Norwood to be activated Sunday

Following Saturday’s 11-2 loss to the Cardinals at Fenway Park, the Red Sox optioned right-hander Kutter Crawford to Triple-A Worcester. In a corresponding move, fellow righty James Norwood will be added to Boston’s major-league roster ahead of Sunday’s series finale.

Crawford made his second start of the season for the Sox on Saturday night. The 26-year-old allowed four earned runs on six hits and zero walks to go along with three strikeouts over four innings of work. Fifty-three of the 85 pitches he threw went for strikes as he was ultimately charged with the losing decision.

This was Crawford’s third big-league stint of the season as he was most-recently called up on June 12 to take the spot of Garrett Whitlock (right hip inflammation) in Boston’s starting rotation.

Prior to that, Crawford primarily worked out of the Red Sox’ bullpen to begin the 2022 campaign, posting an 8.44 ERA and 5.20 FIP with 14 strikeouts to eight walks across eight relief appearances spanning 10 2/3 innings pitched.

With the WooSox this season, the Florida Gulf Coast University product has pitched to a 7.43 ERA and 6.61 FIP with 11 strikeouts and three walks over four outings (three starts) and 13 1/3 innings. He is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 8 pitching prospect in Boston’s farm system.

Norwood, meanwhile, was acquired from the Phillies in exchange for cash considerations on Saturday afternoon. The 28-year-old was designated for assignment last Monday after producing an 8.31 ERA — but a much more respectable 3.65 FIP — with 22 strikeouts to nine walks over 20 appearances (17 1/3 innings) with Philadelphia this season.

The Red Sox were able to add Norwood to their 40-man roster without making a corresponding move since utility man Christian Arroyo is on the COVID-19 related injured list.

That being said, Norwood is out of minor-league options, so the Sox would have to expose the hard-throwing righty to waivers if they intended on sending him to Worcester at some point.

By swapping Crawford for Norwood, Boston will keep 14 pitchers on its 26-man roster. They will, however, need to remove one pitcher from their roster when Major League Baseball’s 13-pitcher limit goes into effect on Monday.

(Picture of Kutter Crawford: Sarah Stier/Getty Images)

Hansel Robles and Hirokazu Sawamura combine to give up 6 runs in sixth inning as Red Sox fall to Cardinals, 11-2

The Red Sox fell to the Cardinals by a final score of 11-2 at Fenway Park on Saturday night. With the loss, Boston drops to 35-31 on the season.

Kutter Crawford, making his second start of the season for the Sox, did not pitch as effectively as he did in his last time out against the Mariners. This time around, the rookie right-hander surrendered four runs on six hits and no walks to go along with three strikeouts over four innings of work.

Two of the six hits Crawford gave up were home runs. With two outs and a runner on in the top of the first, Nolan Arenado crushed a two-run shot 382 feet over the Green Monster to give St. Louis an early 2-0 lead.

In the second, Tyler O’Neill led off with a groundball single and scored all the way from first base on a line-drive double to right field off the bat of Dylan Carlson.

Already trailing by three runs going into the bottom of the second, Xander Bogaerts provided a spark with a leadoff single of his own off Cardinals starter Dakota Hudson. Franchy Cordero then drew a one-out walk to put runners at first and second for Bobby Dalbec, who drove in Bogaerts and moved Cordero up to third on an RBI single. With runners on the corners and the chance to cut further into the deficit, Jackie Bradley Jr. grounded into an inning-ending double play.

Crawford and Hudson each traded zeroes in the third inning, but Crawford ran into more trouble in the fourth when he served up a booming 440-foot leadoff homer to Nolan Gorman. The ball left Gorman’s bat at 106.7 mph and gave St. Louis a 4-1 lead.

The fourth inning would prove to be Crawford’s last frame. The 26-year-old hurler finished with a final pitch count of 85 (53 strikes) and topped out at 96.1 mph with his four-seam fastball, a pitch he threw 37 times. His ERA on the season now sits at 6.41.

In the bottom of the fourth, the Red Sox lineup took advantage of Hudson’s apparent lack of command, but only got one run out of it. Trevor Story singled and Dalbec and Bradley Jr. drew a pair of two-out walks to fill the bases for Kevin Plawecki, who took ball four himself to plate Story. As the lineup flipped back over, though, Jarren Duran extinguished the threat by grounding out to Arenado.

With Boston’s bullpen taking over for Crawford beginning in the fifth, it was Ryan Brasier who got the first call from manager Alex Cora. Brasier made relative quick work of the St. Louis bats in a scoreless inning of relief. The same cannot be said for Hansel Robles in the sixth.

After fanning Gorman on five pitches for the first out of the frame, Robles proceeded to give up a first-pitch, 410-foot solo shot to O’Neill to put the Cardinals up 5-2. Robles’ troubles did not end there, as the righty loaded the bases on one single and two walks before getting pulled for Hirokazu Sawamura.

Robles, for what it’s worth, averaged 94 mph with his four-seamer on Saturday. He came into the night averaging 96 mph with his most-frequently used pitch. Sawamura, meanwhile, inherited a bases-loaded jam and immediately gave up a two-run single to Tommy Edman. Paul Goldschmidt tacked on an additional two runs and Arenado capped off the six-run sixth inning with another RBI single.

From there, Austin Davis tossed three one-run innings of relief while setting a new career high in pitches thrown in a game with 54.

Down to their final three outs in the bottom of the ninth, the Sox went down quietly to seal an 11-2 defeat and their fourth loss in the month of June.

Next up: Pivetta vs. Pallante in rubber match

The Red Sox will look to close out the weekend with a series win over the Cardinals on Father’s Day. Nick Pivetta will get the start for Boston and will be opposed by fellow right-hander Andre Pallante for St. Louis.

First pitch from Fenway Park on Sunday is scheduled for 1:35 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Hansel Robles: Sarah Stier/Getty Images)

Red Sox acquire right-hander James Norwood from Phillies

The Red Sox have acquired right-hander James Norwood from the Phillies in exchange for cash considerations, the team announced on Saturday.

Norwood, 28, was designated for assignment by Philadelphia last Monday after posting an 8.31 ERA — but a much more respectable 3.65 FIP — with 22 strikeouts to nine walks over 20 relief appearances (17 1/3 innings) with the club this season.

Before this move was made, Boston’s 40-man roster was at 39 players since Christian Arroyo is on the COVID-19 related injured list. They therefore did not need to make a corresponding move in order to add Norwood, who is out of minor-league options.

A native of New York City, Norwood was originally selected by the Cubs in the seventh round of the 2014 amateur draft out of St. Louis University. The righty broke in with Chicago in 2018 and has since produced a 5.48 ERA (3.73 FIP) in 48 career major-league outings between the Cubs, Padres, and Phillies.

Per Baseball Savant, Norwood operates with a three-pitch mix that consists of a four-seam fastball, a splitter, and a slider. The 6-foot-2, 215 pound hurler has averaged 96.6 mph with his four-seamer this season, which ranks in the 91st percentile of qualified big-league pitchers.

Because he is out of options, the Red Sox will have to keep Norwood on their 26-man roster or will otherwise have to expose him to waivers if they wish for him to remain in the organization at Triple-A Worcester.

(Picture of James Norwood: Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)

Tanner Houck remains perfect in save opportunities as Red Sox hold on for 6-5 win over Cardinals

The Red Sox opened their three-game interleague series with the Cardinals on a nerve-racking, but positive note on Friday night. Boston held on for a 6-5 victory over to St. Louis to improve to 3-1 on the homestand and 35-30 on the season as a whole.

Michael Wacha, making his 11th start of the year, was solid against the team he began his professional career with. In his first time facing the Cardinals, the veteran right-hander allowed just one run on six hits and one walk to go along with five strikeouts over 5 1/3 innings of work.

The lone run Wacha surrendered came with no outs in the second inning, as he served up a 403-foot solo shot to Nolan Arenado that left the third baseman’s bat at a blistering 108.6 mph.

From there, though, Wacha limited the damage by retiring 12 of the next 16 batters he faced before giving up a one-out single to Paul Goldschmidt in the top of the sixth that was followed by a four-pitch walk of Arenado. At that point, the righty was given the hook by Red Sox manager Alex Cora.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 88 (54 strikes), Wacha relied on his four-seam fastball 36% of the time he was on the mound Friday and topped out at 96.3 mph with the pitch. The 30-year-old hurler also induced six swings-and-misses with his changeup, a pitch he threw 27 times. His ERA on the season now sits at 2.28.

By the time Wacha’s night had ended, the Red Sox lineup had pushed across three runs of their own. Matched up against Wacha’s mentor and former teammate in Cardinals right-hander Adam Wainwright, Jarren Duran made his impact felt right away with a leadoff triple in the bottom of the first inning.

Duran tripled on a 104.5 mph line drive off the center field wall. He then scored from third base when J.D. Martinez grounded into a run-scoring double play.

Fast forward to the fourth, Martinez led off with a single and immediately advanced to third on a line-drive double off the bat of Xander Bogaerts. Both runners scored when Trevor Story snuck a two-run single through the right side of the infield to give the Sox a 3-1 lead.

Picking things up in the top of the sixth, John Schreiber took over for Wacha and stranded the two runners he inherited by retiring Nolan Gorman and Tyler O’Neil. He then got the first two outs of the seventh before Matt Strahm came on to get the third.

In the bottom half of the frame, Franchy Cordero led off with a double and scored from second on a Jackie Bradley Jr. RBI single. After the pinch-hitting Bobby Dalbec moved Bradley Jr. up to third on a hard-hit double, both runners scored on a two-run single courtesy of Rafael Devers.

Taking a 6-1 lead into the eighth inning, Strahm took care of business there before fellow left-hander Austin Davis was called upon in the top of the ninth. Davis got the first two outs rather easily, then allowed the next three Cardinals he faced to reach base on a double, an RBI triple, and a hit batsman.

That prompted Cora to turn to Tanner Houck, who proceeded to give up back-to-back doubles that plated three more St. Louis runs. With Brendan Donovan representing the tying run, Houck did not falter and instead punched out National League MVP candidate on eight pitches to slam the door on the Cardinals.

Houck is now 3-for-3 in save opportunities as he secured the 6-5 win for the Red Sox.

Next up: Crawford vs. Hudson

The Red Sox will go for another series victory on Saturday by sending right-hander Kutter Crawford to the mound for his second start of the season. The Cardinals will counter with fellow righty Dakota Hudson.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. eastern time on FOX.

(Picture of Christian Vazquez and Tanner Houck: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Chris Sale to begin rehab assignment in Florida Complex League on Monday

Red Sox left-hander Chris Sale will begin a rehab assignment in the Florida Complex League on Monday, the team announced on Friday. It will mark Sale’s first in-game action since Game 5 of last October’s American League Championship Series.

Sale, who faced live hitters at Fenway Park on Thursday, has returned to Fort Myers and will throw two innings against the Florida Complex League Rays in Port Charlotte on Monday night.

In a conversation with NESN’s Tom Caron prior to Friday’s contest against the Cardinals, Red Sox manager Alex Cora relayed that Sale will return as a starter and will be built up to five innings before he makes his 2022 debut.

“Hopefully that’s the beginning of his rehab, and from there, it’s just a countdown,” said Cora. “We’re going to build him up as a starter. That’s loud and clear. We just got to be patient and whenever he comes back, we know he’s going to contribute.

As noted by MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith, Sale will likely need to make four or five rehab starts in the minors before being activated from the 60-day injured list. That would put him on a schedule to return to the Sox at some point around the All-Star break in July.

The 33-year-old southpaw began the season on the 60-day injured list after suffering a stress fracture in his right rib age back in February. His throwing program was then paused last month due to a “non-medical baseball situation.”

In his live batting practice session on Thursday, Sale threw 32 pitches over two simulated innings. He sat between 94-95 mph with his fastball and the Red Sox were impressed with what they saw from his changeup.

Upon returning from Tommy John surgery last season, opponents were 16-for-36 (.444) against Sale’s changeup, per Smith. That will need to change if Sale intends to be more effective in 2022.

“I think that’s the difference between last year and this year,” Cora said. “He was a two-pitch pitcher for a month and a half. This year, obviously being that far away from the surgery now, this will play.”

(Picture of Chris Sale: Elsa/Getty Images)