The Red Sox released the following statement about Chris Sale this afternoon:
Chris Sale underwent an open reduction and internal fixation of a left fifth finger proximal phalanx fracture today.
β Red Sox (@RedSox) July 18, 2022
The procedure was performed by Dr. Matthew Leibman at the Newton-Wellesley Outpatient Surgery Center in Wellesley, MA.
If you're not in your third year of residency at Harvard Medical School, or don't have your copy of Gray's Anatomy handy, here's what that means in layman's terms:
Sale had surgery on his left pinkie finger. Typically, the procedure involves placing a pin or screws to re-assemble bone fragments. Inserting the hardware helps ensure the proper healing process, but it doesn't speed up the recovery time.
On Sunday at Yankee Stadium, Sale was struck by a line drive of nearly 107 mph off the bat of New York outfielder Aaron Hicks in the first inning. The ball clipped Sale's pinkie finger and continued into right field. Sale, sensing a serious injury, immediately jogged to the dugout, showed a mangled finger to manager Alex Cora and headed to the clubhouse.
Sale, apparently speaking with some information given him by the training staff on Sunday, said he could resume throwing in another four or six weeks. That would mean sometime in late August or early September.
One industry source Monday said the Red Sox have not ruled out a return to the mound for Sale later this season.
It's possible that Sale could return in the final month, though with the timetable in front of him, won't have much time to build up arm strength. He could follow the path that pitching coach Dave Bush openly contemplated earlier this summer, when Sale was attempting to return from a broken rib -- as a multi-inning reliever.
(Another factor to consider: by early September, most minor league seasons will be over and unless one of the Red Sox affiliates is in the playoffs, there'd be no games available for a rehab assignment).
It's even possible that he could build up strength with a series of those, and toward the end of September, be available to start toward the end of the month.
All of which assumes that Sale doesn't suffer any additional setbacks along the way, which, let's face it, is tough to imagine, considering his recent injury history and his streak of impossibly bad luck.