Account
Chris Sale Injury: Updates on White Sox Pitcher's Flexor Muscle and Return
April 22, 2014
Updates from Thursday, May 22
The Chicago White Sox confirmed that Chris Sale has been activated from the disabled list:
Updates from Wednesday, May 21
The White Sox have announced Chris Sale's return to the starting rotation via the team's Twitter account:
Updates from Sunday, May 18
Scott Merkin of MLB.com passed along a timeline for Chris Sale to return to the White Sox:
Updates from Friday, May 16
The Chicago White Sox provide stats from Chris Sale's rehab start:
Updates from Monday, May 12
Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun Times reports when Chris Sale will pitch in a live game:
Updates from Saturday, May 10
Bruce Levine of WSCR has the latest on Sale:
Updates from Tuesday, May 6
Doug Padilla of ESPN talked to Chris Sale and general manager Rick Hahn about the pitcher's rehab and recovery:
"I'm not going to sit here and lie to you - I feel much better than when we started this process," Sale said. "I threw a bullpen today, got after it pretty good. There's nothing there today that made me think there should be any step backs or any setbacks."
(...)
"Sale had a very good sideline today," general manager Rick Hahn said. "There will be a rehab assignment at some point. We are going to stop with the daily updates on Chris and how he's doing. We'll leave it at the fact that today was a good day and he continues to progress. He's in the phase of rebuilding and building up his arm strength."
Updates from Monday, May 5
Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago reported the latest on Chris Sale's rehab:
Updates from Friday, May 2
The White Sox provided an update on Sale's status:
Updates from Wednesday, April 30
Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun Times has the latest on Sale's status:
Updates from Monday, April 28
Jon Heyman of CBS Sports has the latest on Chris Sale:
Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago had more on Sale:
Despite the positive news, don't expect Sale back this upcoming weekend according to MLB.com:
Updates from Tuesday, April 22
Chris Sale talked about his injury and MRI (via Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago and Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times):
Van Schouwen had more on Sale's thoughts:
Original Text
We are not quite to the point of the MLB season where injuries are devastating to a team’s postseason chances, but the Chicago White Sox received some rather unfortunate news Monday regarding their ace pitcher.
Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times alerted fans to developments on Chris Sale’s injured left arm:
Sale has gotten off to a red-hot start in the young 2014 season with a 3-0 record, 2.30 ERA, 29 strikeouts and a 0.84 WHIP. He has been nearly unhittable for extended stretches and has carried the Chicago pitching staff in the early going.
The White Sox check in at a mediocre 10-10, but they are merely one game behind the Detroit Tigers in the early American League Central race. Losing Sale for an extended period of time beyond the 15 days would spell trouble for any division title hopes they have down the road.
Of more concern than the immediate standings, though, is the fact that it is Sale’s left (pitching) arm that is bothering him. If problems persist throughout the season, it is difficult to see Chicago staying in the race.
General manager Rick Hahn talked with reporters and sounded ready to sit his ace for however much time was necessary, via Colleen Kane of the Chicago Tribune:
We’re going to do everything in our power to protect him for the long term. This is about making sure we get out in front of any issues and make sure he is in the best position to have success and stay healthy for an extended career as opposed to worrying about a start or two here and there.
Sale's high-usage rate is something of concern with this injury, although Bleacher Report's Will Carroll provided a slightly different spin on those worries:
Many are pointing to the 127-pitch outing that Sale had in his last game. While this is high for 2014, it's not that high historically and there is no evidence that it contributed to the current issue. Last time Sale missed time, he'd gone 113 pitches in his previous start before missing a couple starts.
Whenever a young pitcher (Sale is 25) has injuries in his throwing arm, it is always concerning. Check back for updates as they develop.