Tag: surgery

Red Sox’ Chris Sale Speaks on Tommy John Surgery for First Time Since Undergoing Procedure Last Month

Red Sox ace left-hander Chris Sale spoke with the media on Tuesday for the first time since undergoing Tommy John surgery late last month.

Speaking via a conference call with several reporters, the 31-year-old said that he’s “really happy” with where he’s at right now and he’ll get his cast taken off sometime on Thursday.

From there, Sale said that he will “probably” begin the rehab process at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers, but if worst comes to worst in regards to the nationwide COVID-19 pandemic, he could start working out again at his own house in nearby Naples.

“We could have done this six months ago,” Sale said in regards to the procedure. “But I’m okay with that. I didn’t want to jump the gun, I wanted to make sure this was something that needed to be done.”

After being shut down last August due to inflammation in his left elbow, Sale was eventually given the go-ahead to begin throwing again right around Thanksgiving.

Heading into the start of spring training, Sale was completely healthy outside of a bout of pneumonia he dealt with earlier in the year.

“I truly thought I was in the clear,” the hurler said. “I had all the confidence in the world coming into spring training that my arm was going to be as good, if not better, than it was my entire career.”

That turned out not to be the case though, as Sale experienced soreness in his left elbow in early March, shortly after he faced live hitters for the first time since before he was shut down last August.

Later diagnosed with a flexor tendon strain, Sale was prescribed a two-week period of rest and did not begin throwing again until the middle of March.

Even after that period of rest, Sale again experienced discomfort in his left elbow while throwing and that’s ultimately how the decision for the Florida native to undergo Tommy John was reached.

“It was a punch to the gut,” he said. “It was tough to let my teammates down.”

As tough as it may have been, Sale did say that he “sleep[s] easier knowing we did everything we could. We turned over every stone.”

Sale’s rotation-mate Nathan Eovaldi has undergone Tommy John surgery twice in his career. When seeking advice from Eovaldi, Sale was advised to “set little goals” for himself and to not look at the recovery process as a year-long endeavor, but instead focus on two weeks at a time.

“I have a chip on my shoulder,” Sale said. “Well, I guess I have a chip in my elbow, too.”

The typical recovery time for Tommy John surgery is usually 14-15 months, so we probably won’t see Sale on a big league mound again until June 2021 at the earliest.

On a positive note, Sale did say that he throws a “mean” right-handed cutter with a wiffle ball to his sons, so that’s pretty neat.

Red Sox’ Chris Sale Undergoes Successful Tommy John Surgery in Los Angeles

Red Sox ace left-hander Chris Sale has undergone successful Tommy John surgery on his left elbow, industry sources have told The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

The typical recovery time from this procedure is anywhere between 14 to 15 months, so Sale will likely be out of commission until sometime around June 2021 at the earliest.

The Red Sox announced that Sale, who turned 31 on Monday, would undergo Tommy John surgery on March 19th, six days after he began throwing again and felt more discomfort in his left elbow following a brief session outside that following Tuesday.

Per Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom, Sale had experienced enough pain then to shut things down once more, and “the decision after that became clear.”

Since the club announced that the Florida native would be undergoing Tommy John, things had been relatively quiet surrounding the matter before Monday. That is mostly due to the fact that many states have put limitations on elective procedures in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic affecting healthcare facilities across the country.

As Speier notes in the attached article above, “Among the doctors who have stopped performing Tommy John procedures in response to the pandemic is Dr. James Andrews. An Andrews Institute spokesperson said on Monday that the institute had suspended elective procedures, including Tommy John.”

The Red Sox themselves just announced via Twitter that Sale’s procedure to repair his left UCL was performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache at the Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles, CA, so there’s that.

Entering the first year of the five-year, $145 million extension he signed with Boston last March, Sale is set to earn approximately $30 million in 2020.

Red Sox’ Chris Sale Has Flexor Strain

Red Sox ace left-hander Chris Sale has a flexor tendon strain in his left elbow, according to interim manager Ron Roenicke.

This news comes one day after Sale received a third opinion from Dr. Neil ElAttrache, after already getting a second opinion from Dr. James Andrews, in regard to the MRI of his sore left elbow.

Since his Ulnar Collateral Ligament (UCL) was “unchanged”, Sale has at least avoided surgery for the time being, as it was not recommended by either doctor. Instead, he has been prescribed rest and will not throw again for another week or so.

After that period of rest, Sale will begin throwing again and will need to be pain free while doing so. If he does still feel the same pain in his left elbow he experienced last year, then it might be time to assume the worst-case scenario.

“It sucks,” Sale said Thursday. “I know what I’m worth to this team and I don’t want to do anything stupid.”

The soon-to-be 31-year-old was already set to miss about the first two weeks of the 2020 season due to an earlier bout with pneumonia, but this setback will surely push his return date back even further depending on how things go at the end of next week.

This all comes as Sale enters the first year of the five-year, $145 million extension he signed with Boston last March. He will earn $25.6 million in 2020.

 

Red Sox Waiting for Another Opinion on Chris Sale’s Sore Left Elbow

One day after it was revealed that left-hander Chris Sale was dealing with soreness in his left elbow and an MRI had been sent to elbow specialist Dr. James Andrews, the Red Sox are now seeking a third opinion from another specialist in Dr. Neil ElAttrache, according to interim manager Ron Roenicke.

Sale reported the elbow soreness to the team’s medical staff on Monday, one day after throwing 15 pitches while facing live hitters for the first time since last August.

At that time, he was diagnosed with inflammation in his left elbow and received a platelet-rich plasma injection from Dr. Andrews that same month before eventually being shut down for the remainder of the 2019 campaign.

The Florida native was cleared to begin throwing again in late November, though, and outside of a bout with pneumonia, he seemed completely healthy otherwise headed into the spring. But now, it appears that his 2020 season could be in jeopardy.

Roenicke did say to not assume the worst-case scenario with Sale until the Red Sox have gathered all the necessary information, and he emphasized how they “want to get this right.”

Still, as The Boston Globe’s Pete Abraham notes, “teams usually don’t get a third opinion to confirm good news. Getting opinions from Andrews and ElAttrache certainly suggests there’s a significant injury.”

According to Roenicke, the Red Sox should have word from Dr. ElAttrache within “the next day or so.”

Until then, stay tuned for more updates.

Red Sox’ David Price to Undergo Minor Surgery on Left Wrist in Boston on Thursday

Four days after it was announced that he had been shut down for the remainder of the 2019 season this past Wednesday, Red Sox manager Alex Cora announced on Sunday that left-hander David Price will undergo “simple” minor surgery on his left wrist this coming Thursday in Boston.

Per Cora, the procedure will involve removing a TFCC cyst from Price’s pitching wrist, one that has kept the 34-year-old sidelined since September 2nd.

That cyst was discovered back in August, when Price underwent an MRI after experiencing tightness and discomfort in the aforementioned area.

With this operation, Price is expected to be ready for spring training next year, as it will allow him to go through regular offseason preparations.

“We just want to get it over and for him to start the offseason, quote-unquote, the right way,” Cora said before the Sox faced the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday. “He has a week or whatever to start taking care of himself and start doing what he needs.”

In 22 starts before being shut down this season, Price posted a 4.28 ERA and 3.63 FIP over 107 1/3 innings pitched. The Red Sox went 10-12 in his starts,

Now four years into the seven-year, $217 million deal he inked back in December of 2015, the Tennessee native has three years and $96 million remaining on his deal.

Red Sox’ Chris Sale Receives PRP Injection, Will Be Re-Evaluated in Six Weeks

After it was revealed that left-hander Chris Sale would not need Tommy John Surgery, the Red Sox announced that the 30-year-old received a platelet-rich plasma injection during his visit with Dr. James Andrews on Monday.

Dr. Andrews confirmed that Sale did indeed have inflammation in his throwing elbow prior to the injection, and recommended a shutdown period of six weeks before being re-evaluated once more.

Here’s the official statement from Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski.

As you may have already figured out, six weeks from now is September 30th, meaning that Sale’s 2019 season is likely over. Dombrowski confirmed that himself, per MLB.com’s Ian Browne.

If that is indeed the case, the Florida native’s third year with Boston was rather underwhelming.

In 25 starts, Sale posted a 4.40 ERA and .221 batting average against over 147 1/3 innings pitched, presumably ending his run of seven straight seasons finishing in the top seven for American League Cy Young Award voting. The Red Sox went 10-15 in those games.

As mentioned earlier, Sale will be re-evaluated by Dr. Andrews in late September. For now, the Red Sox need to find someone to take their ace’s spot in the starting rotation.