Red Sox Injury Update: Chris Sale’s latest bullpen session shows promise

Chris Sale continues his climb back to the Red Sox

The Red Sox are looking pretty good right now, I won’t say the thing we’re not supposed to say, but I will at least say they’re figuring some things out. One of the pieces still missing from the equation is Chris Sale but based on recent reports that piece may be found sooner rather than later. Per MassLive’s Chris Cotillo, the big southpaw tossed a bullpen session on Monday that left the hurler in a happy mood and got the Red Sox thinking about a return.

Alex Cora spoke about Sale’s latest bullpen session and commented that the lefty talked to him and was very optimistic about the results and how he felt afterward. Things are looking good enough right now that The Condor has another session on the books for Friday and that’s the one that can open the door to the rest of his rehab work.

"“If everything goes well (Friday), probably one more bullpen, then after that, live (batting practice) or (simulated) game,” Cora said. “Hopefully, we can get going. I talked to him today. He’s in good spirits. He liked what he saw.”"

Once Sale is able to get to doing more game-like activities then we’ll truly be able to figure out how far along he is in his recovery. He suffered his broken rib while working out at his Alma-Mater FGCU during the final days of the lockout. He was leading multiple workouts in attempts at getting as many of the Red Sox players ready for the season as possible.

Cotillo goes on to speak on that the timetable and overall timeline for his return are still up in the air as setbacks can happen at any time. It is felt that he won’t need as much time in the minors to shake off the rust since his injury is much different than the one he was coming back from in 2021. Obviously, they’re going to take care and make sure to not aggravate the rib but being that this isn’t as severe as Tommy John, the timeline should be expedited.

The Red Sox starting rotation currently ranks 21st in MLB and while we have seen some stellar starts by the fellas, there have also been more than plenty of bad ones. Getting Sale back, even for half of the season, will be an automatic boost. Hell, we saw last season just how much having him back in the rotation and in the dugout meant to the team. I fully expect a repeat of that in 2022 when he is able to get back on the mound in a game scenario.

This Red Sox side is clicking right now and is getting the job done on every side of the game. That doesn’t mean that they don’t have some issues that need to be addressed before we get into the deep waters of the season. Getting Sale back is a plus, without a doubt, but I would still like to see Chaim Bloom make some moves around the trade deadline in order to get this team to where they need to be in order to fight for the Postseason. With that said, if you’re not getting even the tiniest bit excited to see Sale inching closer to a return then you may need to check your pulse.