First things first: All signs point to Chris Sale rejoining the Red Sox' rotation on Tuesday, at Tropicana Field.
"He'll pitch Tuesday,'' said Alex Cora. He'll pitch somewhere Tuesday, but there's a good chance he'll pitch with us.''
Sale, who walked five in 3.2 innings Wednesday night in Worcester, said his arm responded well the day after.
"I wasn't expecting (to throw) today,'' said Sale, "but my arm feels whippy today. It felt good. And if it feels good, I'm going to use it. It doesn't matter where my next start is going to be, actually. I've got to be more sharp than I was last time out. That comes with reps. I just need more reps.''
With the benefit of a day to look back on an erratic outing, Sale wasn't overly concerned with the results.
"Sometimes you're not going to have your best stuff,'' he said. "These are all things you're just going to have to deal with. And like I said, in hindsight, it's almost better that it happened, that I had some high leverage innings, runners on base. a lot of traffic and not working with my best of the best. It's a character-building start. You roll with it and try to be better from it.''
During a 15-20 pitch bullpen, Sale focused mostly on getting himself properly aligned on the mound, "to feel direction towards the catcher.''
As for the video of Sale dismantling a TV hanging in the hallway near the dugout, Sale was most apologetic and defensive.
"It happens,'' he shrugged. "I would be here without (that emotion). I feel like I've gone months without walking five guys. Especially for a final tuneup start, I expect a lot out of myself. I expect to be who I am. And when that doesn't work out, sometimes emotions take over the best and Worcester got a new TV out of it. It's on its way.''
Sale was asked about the video going viral and what message that sent.
"I don't care, man,'' said Sale. "That's their problem for videoing it. If you want me to act like a normal person, you've got to treat me like a normal person, right? This isn't a normal atmosphere. If I was at Bank of America, it wouldn't fly, right? We're not at Bank of America. This is sports. This is leverage. This is pressure. I take a lot of pride in what I do.''
As Sale acknowledged, it wasn't his first meltdown. And they're hardly uncommon in sports.
"When I was young, I made mistakes,'' said Sale. "I'm not going to shy away from it. I acted like an idiot last night and I've acted like an idiot before. I'd do it in the dugout and I've been told through the years, 'Hey, take it to the tunnel.' So, you think you're in a safe space and you think that you're in private. That's a space where you're not really supposed to have cameras. There's no public access to that. So I thought I was in a safer spot. But it is what it is, man. It's who I am. It's what makes me a big leaguer. It's what makes me good at my job.
"It may not be the best for the public eye, but what is? Who's perfect? Name him. I'd love to shake his hand.''
Cora wasn't bothered by Sale's display of anger.
"He gets frustrated. It's part of it,'' said Cora. "He's not the only pitcher that has done that. He's not the only baseball player that has done that. It is what it is. He's embarrassed because it's out there, but I think that's the fight, the desire to be great. That's what makes him great. Obviously, it's a fine line between getting hurt and showing your emotions. But I think all of you guys have shown your emotions at one point. The thing is, our stage is bigger than yours.
"It's out there on social media and people are going to judge him in certain ways. Like I told him today, 'If you're going to do a rehab assignment, do it the right way. If you get upset, you get upset.' It is what it is. He's healthy and ready to go.''