Bill Lee has been keeping a watchful eye on Chris Sale as the southpaw’s struggles continue through the 2019 season.
And in a recent interview with WEEI.com’s Jim Hackett, Lee identified what he believes is Sale’s key issue.
“Wear and tear,” Lee said. “He’s a thrower, not a pitcher. He does everything hard. Even his changeup is hard. His changeup is 89. That was my fastball!”
Asked to name specifics, Lee said Sale pitches across his body, which “gives (Sale) the ability to throw harder.” But doing so, Lee noted, makes it difficult for Sale to pitch away.
“He has to back door you away but none of his stuff pronates,” Lee said. “Everything I did went away, then I bit inside. With Sale … he pounds inside but can’t go away. When he hangs his changeup or if he takes a little off and throws a cutter and makes a mistake, it’s going into the right-handed hitters’ power and they’re wearing him out.”
So how does Sale solve this issue?
“He’s got to come to the conclusion that he’s got to call his own pitches, he’s got to be Frank Tanana and make an adjustment,” Lee said. “… I like Sale. I love his guts. I love the way he approaches the game. I love the way he works out. It’s just the fact that he doesn’t call his own pitches. It’s like a bird that lays her eggs in another bird’s nest.”
Coming from someone as knowledgable as Lee, we’d say that’s some solid advice.
