Chris Sale knows the highs and lows of life as an athlete in Boston. He played a significant role in bringing the city a World Series in 2018 but spent more time on the injured list than many Boston Red Sox fans could take.
Vaughn Grissom's early experience with the Red Sox has been similar. The young infielder arrived from Atlanta as the trade piece for Sale, and things went awry quickly.
Grissom strained a hamstring strain in spring training which kept him on the shelf until May 3. Meanwhile, Boston's infield defense was in shambles. Grissom brought clean defense but struggled at the plate for 23 games before he strained the other hamstring on the base paths.
Some Red Sox fans were quick to call Grissom a bust, despite his young age and the years left on his contract. At All-Star Media Day on July 15, Sale offered the 23-year-old some advice about playing in Boston.
"Just keep chugging along," Sale said. “I’ve heard he’s a great human being, he’s a great teammate and he’s wildly talented. Injury bug caught him a little bit here and there, just keep chugging along."
Chris Sale gives Red Sox infielder Vaughn Grissom advice about playing in Boston
Chris Sale discussed his time in Boston and gave some advice to Vaughn Grissom https://t.co/oYsUVIYyGP pic.twitter.com/PXtoZqzyoH
— Baseball Isn’t Boring (@BBisntBoring) July 16, 2024
Grissom has already put some of Sale's advice into practice. He shared his thoughts in a recent interview with Chris Cotillo of MassLive.
“I just want to play my game. If they like it, they like it. If they don’t, f--k it,” he said.
Grissom has played parts of three seasons in the major leagues and he's proven he can make an impact. He batted .287 with five homers and a .746 OPS through 64 games with the Braves. He has plenty of time to turn his luck around with five more years of control on his contract.
The second baseman reported feeling nearly 100% last week. He's been taking batting practice and fielding drills before home games, but the Red Sox haven't released a timeline for his return to action.
Boston's manager Alex Cora is hopeful that Grissom will play again this season and discussions have begun around sending him for a rehab assignment. Cora and Sale know there's more to Grissom's play than he's been able to show this year, and the young infielder seems almost ready to give it another go in the big leagues.