Chris Sale Settles In For Red Sox After Allowing Early Runs

Chris Sale took the mound in Houston on Wednesday looking to beat the Astros for the first time in his Red Sox career.

The left-hander did struggle early against the talented lineup, allowing four earned runs in the first three innings. For the most part, Sale executed well with the exception of one fastball that stayed in the middle of the plate that Martín Maldonado hit for a two-run home run.

Despite the early runs, Sale did indeed settle in and seemed to get stronger as the outing moved on. The southpaw retired the side in order in the fifth inning, closing out his start with a pair of strikeouts.

“I thought it was good,” Sale told reporters, as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage. “Obviously didn’t get off on the right foot but just grinded. Sometimes you’ve got to do that. It’s not always going to be pretty.”

The 34-year-old finished five innings with the four earned runs on six hits with one walk and nine strikeouts. As the game went on, Sale’s patented bending slider became a major pitch in attacking hitters.

“Trying to keep them off balance,” Sale explained. “They were taking good swings on the fastball. Definitely good with the slider today and it helped a lot.”

Sale kept Boston in the game and earned a no-decision in an eventual 7-5 win in 10 innings.

“It was a good effort and one that we needed,” manager Alex Cora told reporters after the game, as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage. “After that, he settled down and gave us five. That was good.”

The effort came at an all-important time after the Red Sox lost both games to start the series and had a chance to earn a game back in the wild card hunt as both the Seattle Mariners and the Toronto Blue Jays, who sit in front of Boston, lost on Wednesday.

“We had a sense of urgency,” Sale said. “We had a great series in New York, then came down here and took it on the chin. Those first two games were tough, but we don’t lay down.”