Sox nearing extension with Sale

[Kimmi]

Slasher prediction: Kimmi will wish it was only for 3 years but will be OK with the 5/$145MM

if we factor in this year it's a 6 year contract / 25.5 per year.

 

As long term deals go, this is not that unreasonable. It's along the lines of JD's contract.

 

You're right. I wish it were only for 3 years, but I'm OK with it.

 

Regardless of the deal, I am happy that Sale will be with us beyond this year.

[Spudboy]

Red Sox pitching coach Dana LeVangie describes Sale this way:

 

"A kid that didn't grow up in Boston but sure acts like he did."

 

That is one of the best things one can say about any athlete that plays in this town.

 

Sale "gets it".

[Kimmi]

He was durable but middling in results in year 1. He was hurt in year 2. He was good in limited work last year and had a good 4 starts in the playoffs after getting lit up in his first two starts. He also gets destroyed by your rival. Cmon now, his contract was FAR more than others were offering and his one good postseason is not worth $217 mil

 

I was not happy about Price's deal, but it helped bring us a WS Championship.

 

That makes it worth it in my book.

[notin]

notin, the Yankees prospects at least have been mentioned as prospects.

 

 

You rave about Mike King, who really gets very little buzz and doesn’t seem like he’s much different than a lot of the Sox “non-prospects”...

[jacksonianmarch]

I raved about King’s Season he had last year. Look at the numbers. He’s limited by a lack of high end velo (tops out 94, sits 91-92). But he’s got 3 secondary pitches that are good and he located great. He’ll be a big leaguer provided good health. The reason you haven’t heard a peep about him this spring is he is down with an arm injury

[moonslav59]

Sale is happy to be in Boston...

 

Chris Sale officially signs five-year contract

WWW.MLB.COM

---

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The first standing ovation Chris Sale received in 2019 was not from a packed house at Fenway Park. Instead, it came from a clubhouse full of appreciative teammates who were thrilled that their ace had just formalized a five-year, $145 million extension that should keep him

[jacksonianmarch]

Sale’s average velo last night was 89.1, the lowest of his career. He pitched last night and garnered soft contact, but this isn’t the guy your team paid for. Sale was smart to take that extension

[redsoxrules]

If it turns out Sale velo is what it is now, the team doctors needs to be fired

[Bellhorn04]

If it turns out Sale velo is what it is now, the team doctors needs to be fired

 

It does make you wonder exactly what sort of physical exam he had. The whole thing is a total head-scratcher.

[mvp 78]

I'm enjoying Jamie Moyer 2.0.

[BillyWilliams]

Sale is happy to be in Boston...

 

Chris Sale officially signs five-year contract

WWW.MLB.COM

---

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The first standing ovation Chris Sale received in 2019 was not from a packed house at Fenway Park. Instead, it came from a clubhouse full of appreciative teammates who were thrilled that their ace had just formalized a five-year, $145 million extension that should keep him

 

Sure, he's got 145 million new reasons to be happy..........

[Slasher9]

what was the temp in Oakland last night?

i need to see how his arm is in warm weather before i jump off the GWB.

also, 1 ER in 6 ip is a start i will take errytime. regardless of FB MPH....

[Bellhorn04]

Sure, he's got 145 million new reasons to be happy..........

 

Cap'n Obvious never fails...

[Thunder]

what was the temp in Oakland last night?

i need to see how his arm is in warm weather before i jump off the GWB.

also, 1 ER in 6 ip is a start i will take errytime. regardless of FB MPH....

 

Valid point. Low to mid 50s I believe. Very wet too

[BillyWilliams]

Chris Sale’s velocity, Red Sox offense concerning in another shutout loss

 

 

By JASON MASTRODONATO

 

OAKLAND, Calif. — The Chris Sale on the mound Tuesday at the Oakland Coliseum looked nothing like the pitcher the Red Sox have become used to seeing in his two-plus years in Boston.

 

In a start that was both impressive and concerning, Sale threw six innings of one-run ball despite having a fastball that was stuck in the high-80s. He all but ditched his heater and began pitching almost exclusively with his slider and changeup during the middle innings and still found a way to make it work.

 

But the start did more to create new questions than answer old ones, and it didn’t end well for the Sox, who couldn’t touch A’s starter Mike Fiers in a 1-0 loss.

 

Perhaps surprisingly, manager Alex Cora was upbeat after his team dropped to 1-5 on the year.

 

“Honestly, after tonight, I feel better,” Cora said. “It was a game. One nothing, we had a chance. We competed. It’s not that we haven’t been competing but most of the games we were out of it right away.”

 

A rally looked possible when Xander Bogaerts smoked one high off the 388-foot mark on the center field wall in the ninth inning off closer Blake Treinen, but he tried turning a double into a triple, and A’s outfielder Ramón Laureano threw him out with a perfect throw for the second time in as many nights.

 

After taking a 7-0 loss to the A’s on Monday, the Sox have now been shutout in back-to-back games for the first time since 2015.

 

But Sale’s outing will be the topic of conversation in Boston on Wednesday.

 

Sale faced only four batters in a scoreless first inning, but his fastballs were clocked at the following velocity: 88, 88, 88, 88, 91, 89, 89, 90 and 91 mph. One of those was a belt-high fastball that Matt Chapman smoked out of the stadium for the game’s only run.

 

Sale hit 94 mph multiple times in the first inning of his Opening Day start then slowly tailed off slowly.

 

“I saw 92 mph in the fifth or sixth inning,” Cora said. “I mean, he pitched. I try to stay away from the velocity thing. Sometimes you get caught up in it and it’s like, is he going to be alright? But he gave us six. It was different, but he gave us six.”

 

The velocity never jumped up Tuesday, and Sale almost ditched the fastball altogether. He finished with just 25 four-seamers averaging 89.1 mph, the lowest velocity of any of his 289 career major league appearances. Not once did he generate a swing-and-miss on his fastball. Catcher Christian Vazquez started calling a heavy dose of off-speed pitches instead.

 

“The name of the game isn’t velocity,” Sale said. “It’s giving your team a chance to win. No matter what you’re featuring that day, you’ve got to get as deep into the game as you can and leave your team a chance to win when you’re out of there.”

 

How unusual is that for him? He was averaging 97 mph midseason last year, touching 101 mph, only to average just 90 mph in his final start of the year against the Orioles after shoulder issues ruined his season.

 

It’s not completely out of the ordinary for a pitcher to have dead arm this time of year, especially considering Sale made only two spring training starts.

 

“I’m still just trying to find it,” he said. “Still working on some things with my mechanics and trying to find my space out there. Just trying to get comfortable and find the groove. That’s half the battle with a pitcher, especially a starting pitcher is finding a groove and getting comfortable.”

 

Last year, Sale made four spring starts, averaged 93-94 mph in his first three regular-season starts, then averaged 96 in his fifth start of the year and maintained his velocity until the shoulder inflammation became a problem.

 

“You guys want him to pitch the whole year or do you want him to go out and throw 100 mph right now and not be there for his team?” pitching coach Dana LeVangie said. “He’s building. He had a long year last year. He’s building up to be the guy he wants to be. He started last year similar, but we’re getting to that point, but just not right now.”

 

There was a time in 2013 that Sale had a similar case of missing velocity. That year, he averaged 91-93 mph first four starts with the White Sox then sat at 94-97 mph the rest of the way.

 

It could be nothing. It could be all part of the Red Sox’ plan. They’ve been saying that it’s better to get Sale throwing 98 mph in October than in April. And he was more than capable of getting outs with his slider and changeup on Tuesday night.

 

But there was a moment in the second inning when Cora was seen having a conversation with trainer Brad Pearson in the dugout as Sale continued to throw 88 mph fastballs.

 

That he finished with only one strikeout — tying a career low — also was strange.

 

But the concern in the clubhouse was non-existent.

 

“Zero. Zero concern. Not at all,” LeVangie said. “He dialed it up when he wanted to. It’s there. But he knows how important he is to his team. He can pitch, regardless of the velocity.​”

 

At 1-5, the Red Sox have begun their title defense with unsettling form.

 

https://www.bostonherald.com/2019/04/03/chris-sales-velocity-concerning-in-red-sox-shutout-loss-to-as/

[BillyWilliams]

Cap'n Obvious never fails...

 

And bellhop with another useless non baseball contribution to the board.......

[mvp 78]

And bellhop with another useless non baseball contribution to the board.......

 

But the milkshaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaakes..................................

[BillyWilliams]

But the milkshaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaakes..................................

 

Which are pertinent when discussing PED use in baseball.

 

Unlike a personal attack, which is in no way baseball related.

[mvp 78]

which are pertinent when discussing ped use in baseball.

 

Unlike a personal attack, which is in no way baseball related.

 

lol................

[BillyWilliams]

lol................

 

So, what are your thoughts on sales velocity, or should I say lack thereof?

[mvp 78]

So, what are your thoughts on sales velocity, or should I say lack thereof?

 

I'm enjoying Jamie Moyer 2.0.

 

That's about it.

[BillyWilliams]

That's about it.

 

Deep.........

[mvp 78]

Deep.........

 

Would you rather me just post 2,000 word articles and not provide substance of my own? Is that considered deep these days?

[BillyWilliams]

Would you rather me just post 2,000 word articles and not provide substance of my own? Is that considered deep these days?

 

It certainly adds information that may provide a spark for further conversation.

[mvp 78]

It certainly adds information that may provide a spark for further conversation.

 

It doesn't unless you are providing a summary or are highlighting specific sections you want to discuss.

[BillyWilliams]

It doesn't unless you are providing a summary or are highlighting specific sections you want to discuss.

 

I think most posters here can glean what they want from the article.......

[mvp 78]

I think most posters here can glean what they want from the article.......

 

Must be why they typicaly don't mention the stuff you post?

[BillyWilliams]

Must be why they typicaly don't mention the stuff you post?

 

Some do some don't.........

[Bellhorn04]

And bellhop with another useless non baseball contribution to the board.......

 

Your contribution was as useful as tits on a bull, Billygoat.

[Slasher9]

if he got smacked around i would be concerned. he dominated for the 6 innings he was on the bump.

 

lol...now babe is taking shots at thunder in his sig??