Chris Sale Believes He’s ‘Ahead Of Schedule’ In Comeback From Injury

Having endured a false start to the 2022 season, Chris Sale is ramping up nicely.

The Boston Red Sox ace explained to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo on Tuesday why he believes he’s “ahead of schedule” in his latest comeback attempt. Sale will miss the start of the season due to a stress fracture he suffered in his rib cage prior to the start of spring training. Although the Red Sox haven’t set a timetable for Sale’s return, he said he’s “feeling much better” and revealed he’s hitting his benchmarks along the comeback trail.

“I’m employee No. 41,” Sale told Cotillo. “They don’t tell me that kind of (timetable) stuff. I leave that to them. I just show up just wheels turning, ready to go. I have a routine throughout the day and all I can keep doing is hitting those spots and force them to tell me to slow down. That’s one of my favorite things to do, because that means I’m ahead of schedule.”

Sale underwent Tommy John surgery in 2020 and endured a lengthy and painstaking rehab in order to return to the mound last season. He said his surgically repaired elbow is ready to withstand the rigor of a full season, once he recovers from the rib injury.

“I was in too good of a spot before all of this happened for me to feel like I’m starting back at zero,” Sale said. “I’m not starting back at 100 like if I came in here full systems go, but I’ve felt it coming back pretty quick, even through this process. I had a really good work schedule this off-season.”

Opening Day will come too soon for Sale to pitch for Boston, but he sounds like his 2022 debut won’t be too far away.