Chris Sale, as you might expect, is itching to contribute to the Red Sox.
He missed all of 2020, two-thirds of last season and all of this one, to date. He's appeared in nine regular season games since the end of 2019, and it's true what they say: the waiting is the hardest part.
Sale has one more live batting practice session to throw Thursday, and after that, it's possible that he will begin the final part of his rehab journey by joining a minor league affiliate.
If Sale is to return to the Red Sox sometime in July as a starter, it's likely he'll need at least four rehab starts at Portland or Worcester. If, however, the Red Sox want to accelerate the process, they could have him make a couple of rehab starts, then rejoin the Red Sox as a reliever. That way, Sale could, in effect, complete his rehab while helping the Red Sox at the major league level.
And given the team's shaky bullpen performance -- a league-high 13 blown saves -- Sale would be most welcome in that role.
What's more, he's perfectly willing to follow that path.
"For sure,'' confirmed Sale, as he met with reporters in the Fenway Park home dugout Tuesday afternoon. "At this point, nothing really matters other than getting back out there. Whatever that means. You've kind of seen the evolution of our pitching staff. Different guys are hot at different times. If we've got five guys rolling in the rotation, well, 'Hey, you're going to go to the bullpen.' If we're holding it down out there and we need somebody in the rotation, I slide in there.
"Luckily, we have the flexibility to do that. I have experience in doing both and at the end of the day, whatever it is, it is. For me, pitching is pitching. Strike one, strike two, strike three, get me out. Hand me the ball, and I'll throw it until you take it. That's where I'm at.''
Sale's attitude is admirable. It's team-first, and unconcerned with titles or roles or ego. That's why he's acknowledged by players and staff as the consummate teammate.
But it's not quite that simple. A plan has to be executed, and that's where it gets complicated.
For instance, let's say the Red Sox choose to speed up Sale's rehab and have him pitch out of the bullpen. He undoubtedly would be a nice weapon, giving the Sox another dependable power arm, capable of overpowering opposing lineups. If you've watched the bullpen, you know how much a force like Sale would be welcome.
But eventually, the Sox are going to want Sale to be part of the rotation. So how would that work?
If Sale is pitching two-inning increments, as valuable as those outs might be for the Red Sox' bullpen, how does he build up arm strength to eventually transition back to the bullpen? Are they going to have him work up to piggybacking a starter, offering four innings at a time? That would then make him available once every four days, which kind of defeats the purpose of having an electric arm in the bullpen.
Sure, Sale could build up with side sessions and simulated games in the afternoon. But again, such a workload would make him less available on a day-to-day basis, which sort of defeats the purpose. If he's throwing 45 pitches at 2 p.m, he's not going to be available again for another three days or so.
"If you told me to go throw five innings, I'd find a way to go throw five innings,'' said Sale. "That's just how it is. I understand that there's a buildup and everyone gets caught up in pitch counts and all this stuff. But at the end of the day, if you throw 30 pitches and you have to go out and throw 80 pitches the next day, you just do it.''
I reminded Sale that while he could "just do it,'' the Red Sox almost certainly wouldn't allow him to do it. They have an investment that goes well past this season and aren't about to jeopardize his long-term well-being.
"If they let me, I'd do it,'' said Sale in response, almost conceding the point.
It helps that, from an arm strength standpoint, Sale appears to be well ahead of where he was a year ago, when he rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. This time, he was sidelined by a rib fracture, and he's not dealing with an arm injury. He had all last off-season to build up his arm, and that showed when he hit 96 mph in an early-morning live BP session in Fort Myers Monday.
If Sale can throw 96 in a low-adrenaline setting like Monday, that bodes well for what the Sox might get when he gets back in a game, in front of a full ballpark.
Meanwhile, Sale counts the day and tries not to think about how little he's contributed of late.
"I just want to do my job. It's tough,'' said Sale of the layoff. "It happens, but it doesn't change the fact that I'm not playing, I'm not helping my team out. I'm as good as a sack of potatoes right now, for this team. At least that would feed them. I'm doing literally nothing. That sucks.''
Sale's frustration is understandable and in a way, admirable. He's chomping at the bit to return and help, and he's not about to refuse a path that might get him here faster.
But the Sox need to take the long view here. The Red Sox could use another dominant starter for the second half of the season, and, they hope, October. If that means waiting an extra couple of weeks so that Sale rejoins them fully ready to step back into the rotation, then they should do just that.
