Jon Lester, former Boston Red Sox left-handed pitcher, empathized with Chris Sale about his outburst following his Worcester Red Sox rehab start.
The blowup has gotten mixed reactions by many, with some praising Sale for his competitiveness while others bashed him for his admittedly childish actions.
The incident with Sale was caught on video and posted all over social media, giving the public an opportunity to formulate their beliefs on what happened.
Aside from the wide range of opinions, Lester shared his thoughts on the matter with Tom E. Curran of NBC Sports Boston on Thursday.
“I know the feeling. You pitch long enough and you’ll have instances like that where things don’t go the way you want them to or expect to,” Lester said. “I know he’s probably really itching to get back. He’s had some setbacks and stuff like that.
“I didn’t see the video or anything like that, but if it didn’t go the way he wanted then I understand that frustration and I understand kind of where he’s coming from… So, I mean, it is what it is and sometimes you gotta do it just to get some aggression out,” said the former Red Sox lefty. “You have to kind of let it out. If you don’t, it kind of just eats at you and it becomes even a bigger issue.”
It seems as though Lester is, overall, okay with Sale’s blowup, especially when he noted the effect keeping the aggression to yourself can have.
Despite the outburst, Sale avoided injury over the course of his rehab start in Worcester. The 33-year-old is likely going to make his return on the mound for Boston on Tuesday in a road outing against the Tampa Bay Rays.
