The news only gets more encouraging with each day when it comes to Boston Red Sox ace Chris Sale and his recovery from injury.
A day after pitching against live hitters for the first time in months, Sale was back at Fenway Park on Tuesday continuing his rehab, and the left-handed pitcher spoke with reporters prior to Boston's matchup with the Oakland Athletics.
Sale, who has been on the shelf since sustaining a fracture in his rib cage in February and has suffered a few setbacks during his way back to the mound, updated his timeline for what's next in the rehab process.
Sale plans to throw two innings of live batting practice at Fenway on Thursday, and if all goes well with that, he could be on his way to the minors for a rehab assignment, according to MLB.com's Ian Browne.
Sale told reporters that going through this process hasn't been an easy one, especially with him feeling "about as good as a sack of potatoes," for the Red Sox while injured, per The Boston Globe's Alex Speier.
It seems as though Sale is antsy to return to the club, and help out in anyway possible, even if it means throwing out of the bullpen. That's an idea that Red Sox pitching coach Dave Bush hasn't shot down, and one Sale was asked about as well.
"For sure," Sale said on if he would be open to coming out of the bullpen when he comes back, per Speier.
Over the last two seasons, Sale has made only nine appearances for the Red Sox, and the team should be eager to get him back with Boston playing better baseball as of late.
The Red Sox begin a nine-game homestand Tuesday with first pitch against the A's scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET. You can watch the game, plus an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.
