Red Sox Ace Chris Sale to Make Return from Shoulder Injury Sunday vs. Orioles

Boston Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale will return to the mound for Sunday's game agains the Baltimore Orioles, according to Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe.

Sale has been dealing with shoulder inflammation and last pitched on July 27. While he was eligible to return Wednesday, manager Alex Cora felt it was better to keep him in the dugout a few more days in order to avoid the possibility of hitting in a National League park, per Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald.

When healthy, Sale has been one of the most consistent pitchers in the game over the past few years, finishing in the top six in Cy Young voting six straight times.

He earned his seventh straight All-Star selection this year while producing an 11-4 record and leading the league with a 2.04 ERA, 0.872 WHIP and 207 strikeouts.

Prior to going on the disabled list, he allowed just one earned run across 39 innings in his last six starts.

Although this success made the announcement of his injury a surprise, it appears he will only miss about two weeks of playing time.

With the Red Sox entering Tuesday with a nine-game lead in the American League East, the team was able to remain cautious with their star player.