Boston Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale is one step closer to returning to the big leagues.
Sale is scheduled to pitch in the Florida Complex League on Monday, June 20, per NESN's Tom Caron. The news was announced by the team during their game against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora said prior to the game the team had sent Sale down to Florida to begin working toward the rehab assignment. He threw to live hitters for the first time on June 13.
"The plan is for him to pitch on Saturday - two innings. So that's the beginning of, hopefully, his rehab assignment," Cora said. "... it looks like from Saturday on it's a go. The countdown starts."
While the countdown will start two days later than Cora initially anticipated, it's exciting news for Red Sox fans, who haven't seen Sale pitch in over 240 days. The Boston Globe's Pete Abraham reminded Red Sox fans of the path that Sale took in his rehab from Tommy John surgery in 2021.
The MLB All-Star break will take place in mid-July, possibly setting Sale up for a return following that period.
