The Red Sox keep teasing us with updates about Chris Sale. Sunday was no different.
Ahead of Boston's win Sunday over the New York Yankees, manager Alex Cora was asked about the starting pitcher having faced live hitters Saturday in a simulated game.
Based on Red Sox catcher Kevin Plawecki's account of the session, Sale presumably could resume his role as the rotation's ace.
And with how far he's come since Tommy John surgery in March 2020 and a setback after that, Sale's progress has his coaches and medical staff thinking ahead.
"Really good, really good," Cora told reporters when asked how Sale was feeling after throwing. "I just saw him this morning, he feels great."
Cora revealed the next step for Sale is another live, two-inning bullpen session scheduled for Wednesday. They'll go from there.
"So now we just gotta stay patient, don't get too excited, but the fact that he's progressing this way, you start thinking ahead," Cora said. "You know, when he's going to contribute and when he's going to be part of what we're trying to accomplish, and that's the fun part. Obviously, teams are going to make moves in the upcoming weeks and try to improve. One thing for sure, nobody can trade for Chris Sale, right? We can add Chris Sale to our equation, and we're very excited about that."
Of course, there still is no clear timeline for his season debut.
"We will stay the course, as we always do, and whenever he's ready, he's ready, but we don't want to get ahead of ourselves and and say, this day, and then that day is not the case," Cora said.
"It puts pressure on him, it puts pressure on the whole medical staff, so we'll stay the course and whenever he's ready he'll be with us"
The Red Sox are in good shape without him at 47-31 and back atop the American League East standings. Boston seems to think he'll put them even further over the top.
