The start of the baseball season has been pushed back until at least mid-May by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, but the Boston Red Sox still suffered a loss Thursday.
Starting pitcher Chris Sale will undergo Tommy John surgery, the team announced in a press release.
The left-handed ace experienced soreness in the elbow of his throwing arm during batting practice earlier this month, raising questions about his status for the season.
Sale will be looking at a long recovery period after going under the knife and will likely miss the entire season, if there is one.
It's a big blow to a Red Sox rotation that also lost David Price, who was traded alongside Mookie Betts to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Sale posted a 4.40 ERA through 147.1 IP last year, a down season, but still maintains a better strikeout rate than anyone in baseball history besides Yu Darvish of the Chicago Cubs.
